2019 Tacoma attack

On July 13, 2019, Willem van Spronsen allegedly firebombed a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in Tacoma, Washington. He was shot dead by police who say he was attempting to ignite a propane tank.[1][2][3]

2019 Tacoma attack
Northwest Detention Center
LocationNorthwest Detention Center, Tacoma, Washington, United States
DateJuly 13, 2019 (2019-07-13)
TargetU.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Deaths1 (perpetrator)
PerpetratorWillem van Spronsen

Incident

The incident took place at 4 a.m. at the Northwest Detention Center, a privately owned detention center for undocumented immigrants.[1] Four officers arrived at the scene and called to van Spronsen, who they claim was also wearing satchel and carrying flares, before reporting "shots fired". According to the statement by the Tacoma Police Department, Van Spronsen who was reported to have been carrying a rifle "attempted to ignite a large propane tank and set our buildings on fire", and "continued throwing lit objects and firebombs at the buildings and cars".[4][2][5]

Friends of van Spronsen received farewell letters from him.[2] They describe him as an anarchist and anti-fascist.[2]

Perpetrator

Willem van Spronsen (1950–2019) was a carpenter and a resident of Vashon, Washington[6][1] who had been arrested previously during a demonstration at the same ICE detention center in June 2018.[1][7] In the earlier incident he had a physical altercation with a police officer during an effort to free a protester who was detained.[1] Police have alleged that van Spronsen was armed with a baton and a folding knife.[1] According to The Washington Post, van Spronsen was an anarchist who claimed to be associated with antifascists known as antifa.[8]

Van Spronsen's daughter, who describes herself as an advocate of liberal pacifism, describes her father as a supporter of anarchism but had written that she disagreed with him "on some principles, such as the use of force and weapons in the fight".[9]

Van Spronsen had been active in social media under the pseudonym Emma Durutti, a portmanteau of the names of historic anarchists Emma Goldman and Buenaventura Durruti. Van Spronsen was also a member of the Puget Sound John Brown Gun Club and active in the Occupy Wall Street protests.[10][6] Van Spronsen had formerly been involved with Alcoholics Anonymous.[11]

Van Spronsen had written a manifesto detailing what he viewed as a political justification for attacking the ICE facility.[12][8][13] In this document, van Spronsen stated that "it's time to take action against the forces of evil", citing "highly profitable detention/concentration camps and a battle over the semantics".[14]

References
  1. "Armed man killed during attack on ICE detention center, police say". Washington Post. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  2. "Armed man attacking Tacoma's ICE detention center killed in officer-involved shooting". Seattle Times. 13 July 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  3. Sailor, Craig (13 July 2014). "Tacoma police shoot and kill attacker at center for ICE detainees". Tacoma News Tribune. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  4. Menendez, Pilar (14 July 2019). "Washington Man Accused of Hurling Molotov Cocktails at ICE Detention Center Killed by Police". Daily Beast. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  5. Padilla, Mariel (13 July 2019). "Man Attacking ICE Detention Center Is Fatally Shot by the Police". New York Times. Retrieved 17 July 2019.
  6. "Willem Van Spronsen aka Emma Durutti: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know". Heavy. 15 July 2019. Retrieved 17 July 2019.
  7. Fedschum, Travis (15 July 2019). "Washington ICE detention center attacker Willem Van Spronsen wrote 'I am Antifa' manifesto before assault". Fox News. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  8. Iata, Marissa; Knowles, Hannah (19 July 2019). "ICE detention-center attacker killed by police was an avowed anarchist, authorities say". Washington Post. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  9. "'His heart was tender and large.' Daughter of antifa killed at Northwest Detention Center reflects on his life". KUOW. 16 July 2019. Retrieved 17 July 2019.
  10. Diavolo, Lucy (15 June 2019). "ICE Protests Draw Thousands as Immigration Detention Facilities Face More Militant Direct Actions". Teen Vogue. Retrieved 17 July 2019.
  11. Raftery, Isolde (16 July 2019). "'His heart was tender.' Daughter of antifa killed at Tacoma immigration jail reflects on his life". www.kuow.org.
  12. Krell, Alexis (18 July 2019). "'Maybe it was his last stand.' Man killed at Tacoma detention center felt strongly about ICE". News Tribune. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  13. Horne, Deborah (15 July 2019). "Vashon Island man sent manifesto before he was killed at detention center". KIRO. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  14. Liphshiz, Cnaan (19 July 2019). "Man killed outside Washington detention center cites 'concentration camp' debate in manifesto". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.