Sikh Temple gunman identified as 40-year-old Wade Michael Page
OAK CREEK — Officials identified the gunman in the Sikh Temple shooting in Oak Creek Sunday as 40-year-old Wade Michael Page. Officials said Page entered the temple Sunday morning and opened fire, killing six and critically injuring three, before Oak Creek police fatally shot Page outside the temple. Page was a Cudahy resident at the time of his death, and a U.S. military veteran.
The first officer to arrive on the scene after 10:30 a.m. was shot by Page eight to nine times. He was later identified as Oak Creek Lt. Brian Murphy. He is in critical condition at Froedtert Hospital's Surgical ICU.
Page was later shot and killed by Oak Creek police after not following their orders.
Page served the United State military from 1992-1998, and received a general discharge. He was not eligible for re-enlistment. Page was also a member of the white supremacist band "End Apathy" -- a band he created in 2010.
The FBI is investigating this shooting as a possible act of domestic terrorism.
Heidi Beirich works with the Southern Poverty Law Center. The group tracks white supremacist groups across the country. While Page's band was in North Carolina, he told an online white supremacist webpage in an interview in 2010 he grew up in Colorado.
"We have records in our database going back about10 years on him. He's been heavily involved in the hate music scene. At one time he tried to purchase some items from the National Alliance, a Neo-Nazi group we've tracked for a long time," Beirich said.
The Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Project says they are not surprised Page was not on any FBI watch list. He had no violent criminal history.
The project says in their database alone, there are 20,000 names of people associated with supremacy groups. They say very few actually commit crimes, but call them dangerous for our society.
Criminal records show only minor brushes with the law in three states -- none in Wisconsin.
Page worked at Lucas Milhaupt on the floor of a factory that makes metal parts in Cudahy. Page's boss did not want to speak with FOX6 News on camera, but said Page worked for the company for a short time, and left on his own accord in the middle of July.
An exact motive for Sunday's shooting remains unknown.
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