Police have identified Wess Roley as the sniper who allegedly set a wooded area in Idaho ablaze to lure firefighters before opening fire and killing two of them.
The body of Roley, 20, was recovered by police after they engaged him in a shootout Sunday afternoon. Police confirmed to the Associated Press that he was behind the attack, which the local sheriff described as a “total ambush.”
The firefight took place on Canfield Mountain, a popular hiking destination in Coeur d’Alene. Police have yet to say how Roley died or what his motive was.
Roley’s grandfather, Dale Roley, told CNN he had a “loving family and friends” and that he wanted to one day fight fires himself.
“He wanted to be a fireman—he was doing tree work and he wanted to be a fireman in the forest,” Roley told the network. “As far as I know, he was actually pursuing it.”
The elder Roley said he spoke to his grandson weekly until a month ago, when he supposedly lost his phone.
“It wasn’t like he was a loner,” the granddad told CNN. “We had no reason to suspect that he would be involved in something like this.” He said he is holding out hope that his grandson was not the shooter despite the police’s claims.
Police explained in a Sunday news conference that Roley intentionally set a wildfire on the mountain to lure first responders to the location where he was perched with a rifle. He then allegedly shot at the firemen, killing two and leaving a third “fighting for his life.”
Other firefighters fled the area and called for backup from the sheriff’s office, which dispatched officers on foot and two helicopters to the mountain. A recording of pleas made by firefighters captured some of the chaos, with a man yelling over the radio that he was “pinned down.”
“Send law enforcement, send law enforcement right now, this is an active shooter zone,” he added. “Everybody is shot up here. Law enforcement, code three, now!”
Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris said firefighters had no idea what they would find in the woods.
“We do believe that the suspect started the fire, and we do believe that it was an ambush and it was intentional,” he said. “These firefighters did not have a chance.”
Norris said the third firefighter was critically wounded but was stable as of Sunday evening.
Roley does not have any social media presence in his name. Records show he is from Phoenix, Arizona, but his dad lives in Idaho, an hour north of where Sunday’s shootout took place. His dad claimed to CNN that he was not close with his son and had not seen him since a family gathering last year. The dad’s public Facebook page does not include photos of Roley.
Social media accounts for his parents show that his dad, a U.S. Army veteran, and his mom, a pet groomer, have each divorced and remarried. Each has made Facebook posts in support of President Donald Trump and right-wing politics, but there is no indication their son shares their views.
Roley traveled to Maui, Hawaii, with his mom last year, posts show. Another post shows he turned 20 on May 1.
The alleged gunman’s parents did not respond to calls from the Daily Beast on Monday.
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