Gunman dead after attempting to breach Ohio FBI office
WILMINGTON, Ohio — An armed man clad in body armor who tried to breach the FBI’s Cincinnati office on Thursday was shot and killed by police after he fled the scene and engaged in an hourslong standoff in a rural part of the state, the Ohio State Highway Patrol said.
The confrontation came as officials warned of an increase in threats against federal agents following a search of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-aLago estate in Florida.
The man is believed to have been in Washington in the days leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and may have been present at the U.S. Capitol on the day of the attack, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the matter. The official could not discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The suspect was identified as Ricky Shiffer, 42, according to the official. He was not charged in connection with the Jan. 6 attack, the official said.
Shiffer “attempted to breach” the visitor’s screening area at the FBI office at around 9:15 a.m., and fled when agents confronted him, according to federal authorities. After fleeing onto Interstate 71, he was spotted by a trooper and fired shots as the trooper pursued him, said Lt. Nathan Dennis, a Ohio State Highway Patrol spokesperson.
Shiffer left the interstate north of Cincinnati and abandoned his car on rural roads, where he exchanged gunfire with police and sustained injuries, Dennis said.
Shiffer was shot after he raised a gun toward police at around 3 p.m. Thursday, Dennis said. The fatal encounter with police happened after negotiations failed, he said.
There have been growing threats in recent days against FBI agents and offices across the country since federal agents executed a search warrant this week at Mar-aLago. On Gab, a social media site popular with white supremacists and antisemites, users have warned they are preparing for an armed revolution.
Federal officials have also been tracking an array of other concerning chatter on Gab and other platforms threatening violence against federal agents.