Official: Ex-FBI agent was gunman in Texas base shooting

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

Official: Ex-FBI agent was gunman in Texas base shooting

David Warren, Associated Press

Updated 9:03 pm, Saturday, April 9, 2016

DALLAS (AP) — A former FBI agent who later enlisted in the U.S. Air Force was identified Saturday as the man who killed his commander at an air base in San Antonio before turning the gun on himself.

A statement from the Air Force identified the two men as Tech. Sgt. Steven D. Bellino and Lt. Col. William A. Schroeder. The statement did not name the gunman, but a federal official close to the investigation said Bellino opened fire Friday at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the person isn't authorized to speak publicly about the case.

The official said Bellino was an FBI agent for less than two years before resigning in 2013 and later enlisting in the Air Force. Authorities have not confirmed why Schroeder was targeted. He was commander of the 342nd Training Squadron.

"The 37th Training Wing mourns the loss of our airmen and family members," said Brig. Gen. Trent H. Edwards, commander of the wing. "Our primary focus at this time is to take care of the family and the men and women who are grieving our losses."

Read more: http://www.chron.com/news/texas/article/Official-Ex-FBI-agent-was-gunman-in-Texas-base-7238950.php

[phazed0]

1. Holy crap! First!

[keithbvadu2]

2. Don't FBI agents have a college degree?

Why was he not an officer?

[marble falls]

3. Maybe that was the issue and the Col was his recruiter.

[haele]

6. Easier to enlist than apply to be an officer.

Having a college degree does not guarantee automatic approval to be an officer; there also need to be Congressional approval as
Congress determines how many officer billets the military can be allowed.
My father had an Associates in Computer Science, a Bachelor's in Education,and Master's degree in Far East history, spoke fluent Mandarin and Japanese when he went back into the military as a reservist to finish 20 years (he had spent 8 years in the Army and California Air National Guard back in the late 1950's/early 1960's). He could not be an officer, even though he was deemed physically fit enough, and had enough proven leadership experience (he coached AAA high school soccer and wrestling to state championships over 10 years previous) to become an officer in the reserves. He was the Chair of the history department, and head of both the AP program and the Computer lab at the high school he had been teaching at for 12 years. And he was mildly color-blind.
So they brought him in as an E-5 Computer Operator (a DP in the Navy).

He didn't care much, it gave him and Mom a chance to go to Europe and Japan at least two weeks a year on the government dime; he could work during the day, and go site-seeing on evenings and weekends, and Mom could play tourist during the day while he was working. They loved going to Japan, Rota, and Naples. But he just re-joined for to get a military retirement (the teacher's union was getting weaker, and he was concerned about retirement) and for the MWR and Commissary/Exchange benefits the military had.
He had a career, and wasn't using the military as a "last chance" but as an augmentation to his retirement; seems as this guy might have been searching for a career in policing (typical of an average person who might not have been very educated or connected, but had a strong authoritarian drive) and felt this was his last chance to be something because he couldn't handle failure.

Haele

[Grins]

4. So he wasn't a 'Mooselim'....?

Coulda' sworn....

Who are we going to blame now?

[Aristus]

5. That does it! Let's build a wall to keep FBI agents out of our country!