The man suspected of shooting a prominent Idaho evangelical pastor was arrested Tuesday outside the White House hours after claiming his victim was a Martian.
Kyle Odom, 30, was arrested in Washington, D.C., two days after the attack on Tim Remington outside Altar Church in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, after Sunday services.
CNN, citing the Secret Service, reported that Mr. Odom was arrested at the White House. Mr. Odom was arrested after he threw two suspicious objects over the south fence of the White House around 8:30 p.m. EST, CNN’s source said.
A Washington, D.C., arrest had been confirmed by the Couer d’Alene police after Mr. Odom’s family had told local outlets, according to TV station KXLY in Spokane, Washington.
KKLY suggested that Mr. Odom, a former Marine with no criminal record but a history of mental illness, may be suffering delusions.
“In a Facebook post Tuesday afternoon, hours before he was reportedly taken into custody, Odom posted that he had shot Pastor Tim 12 times – Remington was hit six times – because he claimed he was a Martian who had ruined his life,” KXLY wrote.
According to Altar Church officials, Mr. Odom had no connection to the church before Sunday’s shooting.
Mr. Remington gave the invocation prayer Saturday at a rally for the presidential campaign of Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, which led to early speculation that the attack may have been politically motivated.
But the last two days of developments have made that possibility seem remote.
On Tuesday, several news outlets in eastern Washington state received letters purporting to be from Mr. Odom, according to Coeur d’Alene police Detective Jared Reneau.
The detective said the letters were just a sheet of paper containing the words “The Truth About Kyle Odom” and nothing else.
John Padula, outreach pastor for the Altar Church, told the Associated Press that Mr. Remington has regained consciousness and is “whispering and talking to his family a little bit.”
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/mar/8/kyle-odom-suspect-shooting-ted-cruz-rally-pastor-a/
