Man killed by officers after attempted break-in at FBI Cincinnati field office
Man in break-in at FBI office killed by police had ties to Jan. 6 riots.
The armed man who attempted to breach the Cincinnati FBI building in Sycamore Township on Thursday was shot and killed by police after a chase and a prolonged standoff, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
State troopers did not identify the man nor provide a motive for the breach. The man was identified to the Associated Press and others as Richard W. Shiffer.
Law enforcement officials told the AP he was believed to have been present at the U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6 last year. Shiffer was not charged in relation to the insurrection, according to a USA TODAY effort to track those prosecutions, and does not appear in a Justice Department index of the prosecutions.
Attempted FBI breach leads to hourslong standoff
Around 9 a.m., a man wearing body armor attempted to breach FBI Cincinnati's visitor screening facility. After an alarm and response by special agents, the man fled north on Interstate 71.
A trooper spotted the man's vehicle, a white Ford Crown Victoria, near a northbound rest area in Warren County.
The trooper attempted a traffic stop shortly before 9:40 a.m., but the man continued to flee north. Shots were fired during the pursuit.
The man then exited onto State Route 73 and traveled east. After that, he headed north on Smith Road and came to a stop, exchanging gunfire with officers on the scene.
During the long standoff, law enforcement officials attempted to negotiate with the suspect, the patrol said. Officials worked to take him into custody. Non-lethal tactics were used, but those proved unsuccessful as well, the patrol said.
Troopers said the suspect raised a firearm toward police, and shots were fired back by officers at the scene. The suspect was pronounced deceased at the scene around 3:40 p.m.
During the standoff, Clinton County Emergency Management issued a lockdown for all buildings within a 1-mile radius of Smith and Center roads. People in the area were told to lock their doors and remain inside.
Northbound and southbound I-71 was closed between US Route 68 and State Route 73, near Wilmington, and didn't reopen until around 2 p.m.
Cincinnati FBI breach:Armed man fatally shot after break-in attempt had Columbus ties
Threats made to FBI after Mar-a-Lago search
Although a possible motive for the breach has not been released, the incident comes a day after FBI director Christopher Wray warned of online threats against agents and the Justice Department after the agency searched former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home.
"Unfounded attacks on the integrity of the FBI erode respect for the rule of law and are a grave disservice to the men and women who sacrifice so much to protect others," Wray said in a statement released Thursday after the fatal standoff. "Violence and threats against law enforcement, including the FBI, are dangerous and should be deeply concerning to all Americans."
A USA TODAY review of online postings by an account in the name "Ricky Shiffer" shows the account had recently posted angry reactions to news of the FBI search.
The same account posted during or just after the incursion at the FBI, appearing to describe the man's efforts.
"Well, I thought I had a way through bulletproof glass, and I didn't. If you don't hear from me, it is true I tried attacking the F.B.I., and it'll mean either I was taken off the internet, the F.B.I. got me, or they sent the regular cops while"
The post, time-stamped 9:29 a.m. Eastern time, apparently ended mid-sentence.
What does Cincinnati's FBI field office do?
The FBI’s field office in Cincinnati covers 48 counties throughout central and southern Ohio, including Brown, Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Hamilton and Warren counties, according to the bureau’s website.
The office oversees five satellite offices in Athens, Cambridge, Columbus, Dayton and Portsmouth.
First opened in 1913, the bureau’s headquarters in Cincinnati does counter-terrorism work and investigates white-collar crime, drug trafficking and child pornography, the website states.
The Associated Press and USA TODAY contributed to this story.