Man kills sailor after diarming Perry Officer
NORFOLK, Va. — A civilian was shot and killed by security officers Monday night after disarming a petty officer standing watch on the destroyer Mahan and shooting a sailor who rushed to help.Navy officials said the man approached the Mahan's quarterdeck and was confronted by the ship's security personnel. During a struggle, he took a gun from the petty officer on watch and shot another sailor. Navy security forces then shot the man, who they said was not carrying his own weapon.
The incident occurred about 11:20 p.m. on Pier 1, according to Navy spokeswoman Terri Davis. No other injuries were reported.
The civilian was authorized to be on the base, but Davis could not provide additional details.
It's not clear whether he was authorized to be on Pier 1 or the Mahan. The Navy generally keeps check points at pier and ship entrances as well as at base gates.
The sailor who died was described only as a male. Navy officials expect to release his identity after his relatives have been contacted.
Admiral Bill Gortney, the head of Fleet Forces Command in Norfolk, opened an energy workshop on base this morning with a moment of silence "for our shipmate." He added: "We will find out what happened and we will prevent that from happening again."
The base was put on lockdown for about 45 minutes after the shooting as a precaution. Officers, chiefs and duty section personnel should report to the Mahan this morning, but non-duty section enlisted personnel were being told not to report, according to a release from Davis. Counselors were called in from the Fleet and Family Support Center.
So the guy appraoched thee watch, struggled with and disarmed the PO on watch, and then shot and killed a sailor rushing to his aid. I hope they quickly decipher why that guy tried to baord a US Navy vessel unarmed, disarmed the watch, and then killed by others on watch.
Curiouser and curiouser it gets.
TC
The Petty Officer was a female. The civilian disarmed her and then the other Navy Security Petty Officer came to help her and exchanged shots. The civilian and the male Petty Officer died.