Latest updates on Tampa,FL hotel massacre of 5,by 36 year old Silvio Izquierdo-Leuva,includes background & demeanor info on Silvio,+ URL's for great phots,video clips,& articles
Joe1orbit
While I was out among you humans, dealing with my 8 hours worth of stressful
outdoor chores and tasks yesterday, a MOST interesting massacre was being
committed, over in Florida. Many news stories have already been posted on this
hotel shooting spree, so I will only post the very LATEST updates, along with
BRIEF commentary.
The person who may very well have committed the FINAL genuine mass murder of
the 20th century, at least as far as the USA is concerned, is 36 year old
Silvio Izquierdo-Leyva. He was EMPLOYED by the hotel where he committed his
rampage, the Radisson Bay Harbor Inn, as a housekeeper. So this WAS a workplace
massacre, and interestingly, Silvio did NOT primarily target the relatively
wealthy hotel GUESTS, that he had been FORCED to serve as a SLAVE, via his job,
but rather went after his co-workers. He killed FIVE, four co-workers and one
hotel guest, and wounded THREE others. Not exactly the most prolific massacre
of 1999, but certainly worthy of note. He armed himself with TWO handguns, a
9MM semi-auto, and a .38 caliber revolver. Probably used the 9MM to achieve
MOST of his fatalities. It does sound as though the 9MM either RAN OUT of
bullets, or jammed on Silvio, AFTER he had shot most of his victims. An
eyewitness who saw Silvio trying to flee says that Silvio POINTED the 9MM at
him and PULLED the trigger, but the gun FAILED to fire.
There is also GOOD reason to think that Silvio WANTED to slaughter the
RELATIVES that he had been living with, COMBINE a family massacre with a
workplace slaughter-spree, sort of like what Mark Barton did in Atlanta, but he
didn't manage to properly plan out or execute the massacre of his family.
It is great to see that Silvio properly directed his rage and hate OUTWARD,
throughout the rampage, and made NO attempt to harm himself. He was trying to
FLEE from the hotel when arriving cops took him into custody, a few blocks
away. He HAD successfully CARJACKED a car, but did not actively resist arrest &
acted very CALMLY. As is OFTEN the case, the fulfillment of a LIFELONG fantasy
to MASSACRE fellow humans, OFTEN brings a DEEP sense of CALM satisfaction
immediately afterwards.
Silvio said NOTHING during the rampage, and latest reports are that he is NOT
speaking to police either, not making any type of statement or claim with
regard to his actions. He will be charged with five counts of murder, and it is
POSSIBLE that one of the three wounded folks, who is in CRITICAL condition,
could die.
Perversely, it is likely that your INSANE and DISEASED society will usher in
the new millennium by announcing that it WILL try to get Silvio, a victimized
creation of society, legally MURDERED.
Since this massacre occured in the city of Tampa, there are TWO excellent
online newspapers provinding in-depth coverage of all aspects of this case.
They are the Tampa Tribune and The St. Petersburg Times. The best current URL's
are:
http://www.tampatrib.com/MGI85H8CV2C.html
And:
http://www.sptimes.com/News/123199/TampaBay/Gunman_kills_5.shtml
And:
http://www.sptimes.com/News/123199/TampaBay/Suspect_devoted_to_Sa.shtml
There are GREAT articles, photos, and video links, at the three above sites,
and I urge everyone to take advantage of this opportunity to immerse yourselves
in the True Reality of what may be amerikkka's LAST mass murder of the 20th
century. Small but nice facial photo of Silvio, can be viewed in the third and
last URL, provided above.
Fascinating profile of Silvio is provided, including the fact that he had
recently become religious and was planning to become a santeria priest. He was
born in Cuba, and only emigrated to the USA a few years ago. He took PICTURES
of his "loved ones" and family members WITH him, carried them while he
committed his massacre, and was DRESSED completely in WHITE, from head to toe,
which is a "signature" behavior of DEVOUT santeria god freaks. So it looks like
the insane god myth MAY have been a triggering factor in this rampage, although
of course the ROOT causes of Silvio's True Reality-based rage and hate, must
and do date back to his childhood experiences of abuse, traumatization, and/or
brutalization.
Another GREAT photo of Silvio, taken JUST after his arrest, as he SAT in a
police car awaiting transport to prison, can be viewed at:
http://tampatrib.com/MGIKPN4DV2C.html
As I said, I'm not going to post the very long and detailed recaps of exactly
how this massacre played itself out, because others have already posted the
info, and it IS available at the web pages I have listed above, especially the
very FIRST one listed above, which contains an ARCHIVE of 8 or more articles
from the Tampa Tribune. Please check those articles out at the web site.
Take care, JOE
The following appears courtesy of today's Associated Press news wire:
Five Dead in Florida Hotel Shooting
The Associated Press
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Without saying a word, a housekeeper opened fire inside a
hotel crowded with football fans in town for a bowl game, killing four
co-workers before shooting a fifth person dead as he tried to escape,
authorities said.
Three others were wounded in the 3 p.m. Thursday spree. One remained in
critical condition early today, while the other was in serious condition. The
third was treated and released on Thursday.
The suspect, Silvio Izquierdo-Leyva, 36, did not speak to investigators after
being arrested and charged with five counts of first-degree murder, Police
Chief Bennie Holder said. He would not speculate on a possible motive.
Izquierdo-Leyva was arrested shortly after he opened fire in the Radisson Bay
Harbor Inn and struck seven people: two outside the front entrance, two in the
lobby, one in another area, one by the pool and one in a restaurant.
``He didn't say nothing - just 'boom, boom, boom,''' said Radisson employee
Lawrence Wilson, pantomiming how the shooter fired. ``We had no beef with the
guy. He just ... snapped.''
The slain hotel workers were identified by authorities as Eric Pedroso, 29,
Barbara Carter, 55, Jose Aguilar, 40, and George Jones, 43.
The shootings occurred when the hotel, east of the city's airport, was packed
with football fans in town for the New Year's Day Outback Bowl between Purdue
and Georgia.
Izquierdo-Leyva was on duty at the time of the shootings and was arrested
without incident within 20 minutes, Holder said.
``When I arrived on the scene, it was just like someone having been stopped for
a traffic violation,'' Holder said. ``He was not upset, he was very calm. He's
upstairs sleeping; he's obviously not too concerned about it.''
Rafael Barrios, 20, a bellman who came to the hotel on his day off to pick up
his paycheck, said the gunman pointed a pistol at him through his car window.
``I saw him switching the clips,'' Barrios said. ``I jumped out of my car and
ran.''
Izquierdo-Leyva allegedly drove Barrios' car to a restaurant about 5 miles
away, where he tried to take another car from Dolores Perdomo, 56, police said.
She was shot dead when she resisted, and Izquierdo-Leyva was arrested a short
time later, police said.
Holder said Izquierdo-Leyva is a legal immigrant from Cuba who had been living
in Alabama, and began working on the housekeeping staff at the Radisson in
November.
The St. Petersburg Times reported today that the 16-year-old niece of
Izquierdo-Leyva received a call from her mother saying he had tried to shoot
her at the hotel as she came by to pick up her paycheck. She was not among the
dead or injured.
Family members told the Times that Izquierdo-Leyva recently returned from three
weeks in Cuba with a renewed interest in Santeria, an African-rooted religion.
He had recently embarked on a year's worth of studies to become a priest in the
faith.
The hotel rampage became the latest U.S. workplace shooting in a year marked by
rampaging gunmen, from a stock brokerage in Atlanta to the halls of Denver's
Columbine High School.
It rattled hotel guests who beforehand had only the new year and football on
their minds.
Mike Conley was at the hotel's outdoor restaurant near the pool when he heard a
noise like firecrackers.
``I saw a woman screaming and I thought it was some sort of prank,'' said
Conley, of Kansas City, Mo. ``All of the sudden, you look over right where you
were standing a few minutes earlier and there is a dead body there. I don't
think it's hit me yet.''
Carson Woods, a Purdue fan from Dayton, Ohio, said he was leaving the hotel
lobby to retrieve a bag from his car when he heard shots.
``I heard two pops and saw people running out of the hotel,'' Woods said. ``I
knew I had to get out of there.''
AP-NY-12-31-99
-----------------------------------------------------------
The following appears courtesy of the 12/31/99 online edition of The St.
Ptersburg Times newspaper:
Suspect devoted to Santeria
The family of the man charged with the shooting rampage say he had begun work
to become a priest of the religion created by slaves.
By KATHRYN WEXLER
St. Petersburg Times, published December 31, 1999
TAMPA -- When Silvio Izquierdo-Leyva returned from a visit last month to his
native Cuba, he was a changed man.
He had always been drawn to Santeria, a religion rooted in Africa with gods,
spirits and sacrifices. But now, Izquierdo had embarked on a year's worth of
studies to become a Santero, a priest of the faith.
Suspect Silvio Izquierdo-Leyva was a housekeeper at the Radisson where four
people were killed and three wounded.
And as such, jeans and T-shirts would no longer do, his family said.
"He must wear white," said his niece Liza Izquierdo, 16. That included even his
shoes.
When, according to police, Izquierdo sprayed the Radisson Bay Harbor Hotel and
the streets of Tampa with bullets Thursday, he was dressed entirely in the
color of purity in Santeria lore.
Late Thursday, police still had not formally identified the suspect. But
co-workers who witnessed the shooting said the man with the gun was Silvio
Izquierdo-Leyva.
And the rampage left Izquierdo's family dumbfounded. Never had they seen a sign
of violence, his nieces and nephews said.
And he seemed stable.
"He must have been crazy but he sure didn't seem like it," said another niece,
Sheena Vazquez, 14. Even at the West Tampa house where Izquierdo lived
periodically over the last year, family members said nothing seemed to bother
the man who was well over 6 feet tall and had a belly that revealed his hefty
appetite.
"He was the quiet type," Liza Izquierdo said about the uncle whom they
affectionately called "Kaki."
And maybe, they said Thursday night, as police tallied five dead and more
wounded, the silence was the problem.
"I guess he's the type of person to hold it all in," she said quietly against
the noise of cars rushing down Interstate 275, just beyond the front yard.
When he came to the United States several years ago, Izquierdo left behind
sisters, brothers and a young daughter in Cuba. He lived for a while in
Mississippi with a woman, either a girlfriend or wife, said Liza and Sheena.
Liza and Sheena's father, George, who was Izquierdo's brother, died years ago.
But when Izquierdo moved to Tampa last year, he came to live with them, their
three siblings and their mother Angela Vazquez, 40.
"He always liked my mom," Liza said. "When my dad and mom got together, she
said (Izquierdo) had a little crush on her."
And yet, it appears Izquierdo might have been targeting the family Thursday.
Liza got a near-hysterical call from her mother Thursday afternoon that
Izquierdo tried to shoot her at the Radisson hotel when she stopped by to pick
up a paycheck.
He then went to their house, at 3023 Green St., looking for family members but
found none home.
When Angela Izquierdo asked him to move out seven months ago, he moved into a
West Tampa home with a woman he was dating. The woman, Adrianna, who was
reached by phone Thursday and would not give her last name, said there weren't
any problems between them, and that he never bad-mouthed the family.
Six months ago, though, he bought a gun. Adrianna said she didn't know why he
got one or how, or even what kind.
But she said Thursday morning was like any other. Izquierdo left for work at
8:30, and when she called him an hour later, everything seemed normal.
"Get the clothes ready because when I come home, we're washing them," he told
her.
But at least one co-worker thought Izquierdo seemed troubled Thursday. Hotel
employee Dolly Guzman, 35, said that since Izquierdo started work there two
months ago, he usually was nice, if taciturn.
"He seemed weird today," said Guzman, a maid at the hotel for 13 years. "I
talked to him and he didn't answer very nicely."
Guzman also said he was known to be involved in witchcraft and once refused to
go to a employee party because it was against his religion.
But even to family, he didn't reveal much about his faith. Santeria is a
secretive religion begun several centuries ago by West Africans enslaved in
colonial Cuba. His trip to Cuba lasted 21 days -- the longest allowable by
visa.
Before he left, he collected numerous photos of Angela and her children and
took them with him. Sheena Vazquez said she wasn't sure if they were part of a
Santeria ceremony or if he just wanted to show them to family.
And despite his recent voyage and steady employment, money was always tight,
family said.
"He was always calling us, asking for money," Liza Izquierdo said.
But the family wasn't bothered when he came around. On weekends, he took his
bait and tackle and headed to the Courtney Campbell Parkway to fish. At home,
he watched Spanish-language soap operas.
The day before Christmas, he was at Angela's house watching action and horror
movies with the group, including Rage, Rush Hour and Carrie II at least twice.
A month earlier, Izquierdo had asked Angela if he could move back in.
She said no. She didn't want her five children to have to give up any of their
bedrooms.
Izquierdo didn't bring it up again. And he didn't appear offended.
But family members still grappled with what may have triggered the rampage
police say was Izquierdo's doing.
Said Sheena Vazquez, "Something must have happened that he didn't like my mom
and us."
------------------------------------------------------------
The following appears courtesy of the 12/31/99 online edition of The Tampa
Tribune newspaper:
Dec 31, 1999
Niece says suspect quiet, shy, sweet man
TAMPA - Nely Rodriguez was surprised but not alarmed when Silvio
Izquierdo-Leyva burst through the front door of 3023 Green St. and brusquely
asked, ``Where's everybody at? Where they at?''
``He seemed like he was paranoid, kind of scared,'' said Rodriguez, 16, who
often visits a friend at the house, Liza Izquierdo, also 16. Izquierdo-Leyva is
Liza's uncle, Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez said she wasn't worried when the 36-year-old hotel worker came
through the door. She had no idea that minutes later and a few blocks away,
Izquierdo- Leyva would be surrounded by Tampa police and arrested as the prime
suspect in the gunshot slayings of five people.
Rodriguez said Izquierdo-Leyva walked through the kitchen and into the living
room, then went back to the kitchen and turned on the kitchen tap.
``He turned the water on and I think he put water on his face,'' she said. ``He
left the water running. Then he left ... I never saw a gun,'' she said.
Rodriguez said she thought Izquierdo-Leyva left in a white car, but she didn't
know what kind. Police say Izquierdo-Leyva stole a white Honda Accord from the
Radisson Bay Harbor, where four of the dead were killed. After wrecking the
Honda he tried to carjack a Mercury at La Teresita restaurant, killing Dolores
Perdomo, 56, in the process, police said. He then successfully carjacked a
white Chevrolet Celebrity station wagon, police said.
About 5 1/2 hours later, Izquierdo-Leyva would be asleep on the floor of a
police interrogation room, Police Chief Bennie Holder said. He made no
statement and asked for a lawyer, Holder said.
Her uncle is a good-natured, even sweet man who never yelled at his girlfriend
and liked to fish, Liza said.
Only her brother, Mike Vasquez, 13, remembered anything out of the ordinary.
The eighth-grader said he saw his uncle with a pistol several months ago.
``He was holding it for somebody else,'' the boy said. ``It wasn't his.''
Social Security information shows that Izquierdo-Leyva was issued a Social
Security card in Alabama between 1995 and 1997.
Liza said her uncle came from Cuba in 1995, and is a U.S. citizen. But Holder
said he was a Cuban immigrant with an extended visa.
Liza's mother, Angela Vasquez, is married to Izquierdo-Leyva's brother, Liza
said.
State records show that Izquierdo-Leyva was issued a Florida driver's license
in 1998, listing the Green Street address as his own.
His niece said he didn't reside there, but lived in Tampa with his girlfriend
of about a year, who the teenager said she knew only as Aviana. ``He was the
quiet, shy type,'' Liza said. ``He never raised his voice.''
Before moving to Tampa, records show, Izquierdo-Leyva lived in Mobile, Ala.
Residents along Green Street in Tampa said they did not know Izquierdo-Leyva.
Staff writers Cloe Cabrera and Edward Woodward contributed to this report.
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