Sniper who killed two firefighters had ‘idolised' profession
Wess Val Roley, 20, used a high-powered rifle to kill Frank Harwood, 42, and John Morrison, 52, as they arrived to put out a 26-acre-wide wildfire he had started near a hiking trail on Canfield Mountain.
A third fireman, Dave Tysdal, was critically injured but is in a stable condition.
A standoff between Roley and approximately 300 law enforcement officers – including city, county, state, and federal authorities, as well as police snipers aboard two helicopters – lasted several hours on Sunday afternoon before the gunman took his own life.
A piece of flint, found next to Roley's body, is believed to have been used to deliberately start the fire and lure the firemen into an ambush.
A shotgun, several rifled slugs and fragments from another firearm, possibly a rifle, were also recovered by officers.
Police believe Roley, who was living in a car parked near the ambush, may have stashed more weapons around the trail north-east of Coeur d'Alene city.
The motivation for the attack remains unclear and a manifesto has not been found by detectives.
Roley's grandfather revealed that his grandson 'idolised' firefighters and had applied to become one, but said 'something must have snapped' to trigger the shooting.
Dale Roley said he initially believed that his grandson was one of the first responders to the scene.
Mr Roley told NBC News: 'He really respected law enforcement. He loved firefighters.
'It didn't make sense that he was shooting firefighters. Maybe he got rejected or something.'
Mr Roley speculated that his grandson may have been turned down from joining because he was 5ft 8in tall.
He said: 'I know he had been in contact to get a job with a fire department. He wanted to be part of a team that he sort of idolised.'
Firemen were first called to reports of a blaze on the mountain at around 1.30pm local time (9.30pm BST) and gunshots were reported about half an hour later.
Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris said that Roley had used high-powered sporting rifles to fire rapidly at first responders who thought they were under attack from multiple shooters.
The suspect had been hiding in the rugged terrain, Mr Norris said, and he instructed deputies to fire back.
Mr Harwood and Mr Morrison were taken to Kootenai Health hospital but were pronounced dead on arrival, according to Kim Anderson, a hospital spokesman.
After an hours-long barrage of gunfire, officers were able to identify Roley's exact position by tracing his mobile phone on the hiking trail, which officials said was being used by hundreds on that Sunday afternoon.
Mr Norris said Roley had had five 'very minor' interactions with police since moving to Idaho in 2024.
In one case, he was found to be trespassing at a restaurant by police.
Mr Norris ruled out the suspect having 'any nexus to Islamic jihad', which he said had been falsely suggested on social media.
According to a social media post from his mother, Roley had moved from Arizona to Idaho in 2023 to work for his father's tree-trimming company.
She wrote in October 2024 that her son was 'doing great living in Idaho'.
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