Timeline released of 30 hour-plus gunman standoff with St. Clair Shores police
(FOX 2) - St. Clair Shores police have released a timeline of a more than 30-hour barricaded gunman standoff from July 4.
Officials say the timeline was released to address questions that have been released surrounding the incident, in which two people were wounded and a third, Carol Baur, was killed by the gunman, Tom Ihlenfeldt.
Ihlenfeldt died by suicide, but not before holing up inside Baur's home for hours in the 31900 block of Margaret, and shooting at police while making threats. In the report it states his body was found with a gasmask on behind a self-made barricade with an assault rifle, high capacity magazine and a handgun next to his body. Ihlenfeldt also had another fully loaded high capacity magazine in his pocket.
The SCSPD released the timeline of the standoff, which began a little after 10 p.m. July 4, after he fired at a neighbor's family allegedly enraged by their fireworks.
Producer note: Some language and details may be upsetting to some readers.
ST. MARGARET TIMELINE *** All Times are Approximate* *** 7/4/19
2205 hrs - Call was received by S.E.R.E.S.A. dispatch that the neighbor has threatened the caller with a gun. The gun was not seen by the caller.
2208 hrs - Scout cars are dispatched to 31916 St. Margaret for a neighbor trouble complaint
2210 hrs - Caller was on the phone with dispatch and informs them the suspect has fired shots at her residence and shot her window out.
2211 hrs - Caller reports that (2) people have been shot as the first officers arrive on the scene.
2213 hrs - Officers locate the (2) victims at 31916 St. Margaret and identify 31925 St. Margaret as the location where the suspect fled. It was unconfirmed if the suspect was still inside. A group of officers work to establish a perimeter around the suspect's residence while others are rendering aid to the victims and attempting to control an extremely upset crowd that was growing quickly.
2217 hrs - Officers report multiple shots being fired from the suspect's residence. Several officers continue to assess the suspect's residence while others immediately establish a plan for the gunshot victims to be evacuated from their residence which was located across the street, slightly south, and in direct line of fire from the suspect's residence.
Both gunshot victims were removed from the residence and taken into the backyard where they were lifted over the rear fence and turned over to St. Clair Shores EMS personnel. Mutual aid was requested from Eastpointe Police, Roseville Police and Fraser Police. Numerous officers go house to house notifying residences to shelter in place or to evacuate under police supervision.
2230 hrs - The St. Clair Shores Emergency Response Team was activated.
During this time, on scene personnel continued to maintain a perimeter around the suspect's residence, interview witnesses and gather as much information possible to positively identify the suspect. Once the suspect's identity was established, attempts were made to locate his phone number, identify any other individuals who may be inside the residence and identify family members to gather intelligence on the suspect.
2255 hrs - A phone number was located for who was believed to be a family member of the suspect. Contact was made with the family member who advised that Ihlenfeldt has just called them to say goodbye. Ihlenfeldt's phone number was confirmed with this individual and information, including the phone number for Ihlenfeldt's acquaintance, identified as Carol Baur, who was said to also reside at 31925 St. Margaret, was obtained.
2302 hrs - A call was placed to Baur's cell phone. There is no answer.
2316 hrs - A call was placed to Ihlenfeldt's cell phone. The call went to voicemail.
2357 hrs - Ihlenfeldt answered his phone and stated he wasn't coming out of his house. Numerous additional calls were placed to Ihlenfeldt's phone, however, the calls went to voicemail or he would answer and hang up without saying anything.
07/05/19
0010 hrs - Ihlenfeldt answered his phone and was asked to come outside. Ihlenfeldt refused and stated "you have to come in and get me." The contacting officer asked if Carol was in the house and Ihlenfeldt confirmed that she was. The contacting officer asked to speak to her and Ihlenfeldt refused. Ihlenfeldt told the officer that Carol was fine and she was sleeping. The officer asked him to wake her up so he could confirm she was ok, however, Ihlenfeldt refused.
Ihlenfeldt then asked the officer if he "killed any niggers." The officer told him no and again asked him to come outside. Ihlenfeldt said "no" and hung up.
0024 hrs - A call was placed to Baur's cell phone and it went to voicemail.
0027 hrs - A call was placed to Ihlenfeldt's cell phone and he answered. The officer asked Ihlenfeldt to come outside, however, he stated "come in and get me motherfucker." Ihlenfeldt was informed that the officer had spoken with his daughter and that she was worried about him. Ihlenfeldt responded "I'm sure she is" and hung up.
0032 hrs - Shots are fired from the residence.
0033 hrs - A call was placed to Ihlenfeldt's cell phone and it went to voicemail. Additional shots are fired from the residence.
0040 hrs- Additional calls were placed to Ihlenfeldt's cell phone throughout this incident in an attempt to negotiate a peaceful surrender, however, Ihlenfeldt never answered his phone and let the calls go to voicemail. The remaining phone calls made to Ihlenfeldt's phone will not be listed on the timeline. The last phone contact made with Ihlenfeldt was at 0027 hrs.
0047 hrs - St. Clair Shores Emergency Response Team members approach the residence inside an armored General Purpose Vehicle (GPV). Ihlenfeldt fires several shots that strike the GPV.
0051 hrs - The front door of the residence is breached by the GPV.
0132 hrs - 0403 hrs - Tear gas was deployed into several areas of the residence and numerous phone calls are made to Ihlenfeldt's cell phone that go to voicemail.
0438 hrs - Michigan State Police Bomb Squad deploy the first robot into the residence. The robot had technical difficulty along with difficulty moving through the debris on the porch and in the front room of the residence.
0555 hrs - The robots technical problem is resolved and it is successful in moving past the debris. The robot is successful in maneuvering through the living room. A shotgun is observed laying on the floor.
0629 hrs - The robot moves into the first floor hallway and a handgun is observed laying on the ground.
0632 hrs - The robot moves into the kitchen and at this time, Baur is observed deceased on the floor. A search is conducted of the first floor in every area accessible to the robot and Ihlenfeldt is not observed.
0831hrs - An M.S.P. robot is able to descend down the stairs into the basement. The robot is not able to check all areas and Ihlenfeldt is not observed.
0951 hrs - An M.S.P. robot is deployed into the residence where it successfully checks the attic space. Ihlenfeldt is not observed.
1112 hrs - An M.S.P. robot is deployed into the residence to conduct a secondary and more thorough search of the basement. As the robot descends down the stairs and reaches the last step, Ihlenfeldt fired numerous shots through the wall that struck the robot and temporarily disabled the camera. The robot operator was able to recover the camera view and as the robot rounded the corner to continue its search, Ihlenfeldt fired numerous shots that struck the robot and completely disabled it. Enough information was obtained prior to the robot being disabled that confirmed Ihlenfeldt had established an offensive position in the basement.
1232 hrs - Tear gas was deployed into the residence.
1239 hrs - Tear gas was deployed into the residence.
1246 hrs - Ihlenfeldt was observed on a robot camera that had been deployed into the noftheast basement window approaching the basement stairs armed with an assault rifle with a large capacity magazine and wearing a gas mask. Ihlenfeldt was observed firing multiple shots up the stairs and in the direction of the GPV that was occupied by several officers and parked directly in front of the house.
Officers inside the GPV observed several of the rounds strike Ihlenfeldt's vehicle, which was parked in the driveway of the residence, and the house directly next door to the south. Ihlenfeldt was observed retreating back to the west side of the basement and out of the camera's view.
1248 hrs - Additional rounds of tear gas were deployed into the residence.
1303 hrs - The first round of smoke canisters were deployed into the residence in an attempt to have Ihlenfeldt exit.
1308 hrs - 1624 hrs - Additional rounds of smoke and multiple rounds of flash bangs deployed into the residence.
1720 hrs- A fire hose was deployed down the basement stairs and the water was turned on. The basement was filled with water in an attempt to have Ihlenfeldt exit the residence.
1909 hrs- The water being flushed into the basement was turned off.
1924 hrs - Smoke canisters were deployed into the residence.
2045 hrs - Officers were able to confirm through a robot camera that the water in the basement had drained quickly and was now down to a depth of approximately two (2) feet.
2111 hrs- Emergency Response Team members deploy a pole camera into several basement windows in an attempt to locate Ihlenfeldt, however, Ihlenfeldt was not observed.
2125 hrs - An MSP robot was deployed into the residence to conduct another search of the basement, however, it was unsuccessful.
07/06/19
0200 hrs - Emergency Response Team members make entry to the residence and locate Ihlenfeldt deceased in the basement with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
Ihlenfeldt was located behind a self-made barricade and he was wearing a gas mask. An assault rifle with a high capacity magazine and a handgun were found next to Ihlenfeldt's body. Ihlenfeldt also had another fully loaded high capacity magazine in his pocket. Ihlenfeldt's acquaintance, Carol Baur, was found deceased on the kitchen floor with what appeared to be multiple gunshot wounds.
A search warrant was executed on the residence which resulted in the following items being recovered:
- Smith & Wesson .22 caliber semi-automatic handgun
- Smith & Wesson .40 caliber semi-automatic handgun
- Smith & Wesson .44 caliber revolver Arsenal Arms SLR 7.62 x 39 assault rifle
- Mossberg Model 590 12 gauge shotgun
- Smith & Wesson .22 caliber rifle
- 1000 — 2000 rounds of various ammunition
Although the investigation is still on-going, it has been determined that Ihlenfeldt legally purchased all (3) handguns from a firearms store on 06/01/15. It has also been determined that all three (3) handguns are still registered to the store where Ihlenfeldt purchased them.
Under Michigan law, Ihlenfeldt was required to notify the St. Clair Shores Police Department, the jurisdiction in which he lived at the time of the purchase, within 10 days of the purchase by submitting the Michigan State Police Pistol Sales Record form (RI-60) in order to have them registered in his name. Failure to do so is a civil infraction that imposes a $250 fine.
The firearms store is only obligated to conduct a background check on the individual purchasing a firearm and not obligated to make notification of any firearm purchases. It is incumbent on the firearm purchaser to make that notification and in Ihlenfeldt's case, he failed to do that. The only time law enforcement officials become aware of someone in possession of an unregistered handgun is if that individual is caught with the handgun in their possession and the firearm is run through the Law Enforcement Information Network.
Under Michigan law, a permit is not required to purchase or carry a long gun (rifle or shotgun) and there is no gun license or registration required. Two of the long guns recovered from Ihlenfeldt's residence have been determined to be clear and one of the long guns is still being researched.
The investigation also included looking into Ihlenfeldt's past. In 2006, Ihlenfeldt was named as a suspect in an alleged sexual assault involving a minor that took place in St. Clair Shores. This matter was investigated by the St. Clair Shores Police Department and as a result, the Macomb County Prosecutor's Office authorized one count of felony Criminal Sexual Conduct — First
Degree against Ihlenfeldt. In March '07, Ihlenfeldt's trial in 16th Circuit Court (Judge Donald Miller) resulted in a hung jury. Prior to the start of the second trial in August ' 17, Ihlenfeldt reached a plea agreement where he pled no contest to an amended count of felony Criminal Sexual Conduct — Second Degree under MCL 771.1. Ihlenfeldt was subsequently sentenced to four (4) years of reporting probation and he was required to register as a sex offender. In August '08, an order was signed to have Ihlenfeldt resentenced.
On October 9, 2008, Ihlenfeldt appeared in front of Judge Miller where he was resentenced which resulted in the dismissal of count one (1) CSC 1 st degree, dismissal of count two (2) CSC 2nd degree, both felonies, and the guilty pleas of added count three (3) Indecent Exposure and count four (4) Exhibition of Obscene Material, both misdemeanors. Judge Miller also ruled that Ihlenfeldt was removed from the sex offender registration list. Based on this information, it has been determined that Ihlenfeldt was not a convicted felon and therefore, had the legal right to possess firearms.
Please keep in mind that this investigation is still on-going. We are fully prepared to release additional information if and when it is obtained.
The complete report is below
St. Clair Shores barricaded gunman police timeline by David Komer on Scribd