Heartfelt Prez chats with fams
THE SNIPER’S AK-47
war veteran interested in getting his hands back on one of the powerful weapons.
“He’s in a black SUV. (We) get out, shake his hand, introduce ourselves in person,” Crews recalled “My stepdad actually gets out, thanks him for his service, and lets us do our thing.”
Johnson told Crews about missing the rifle’s firepower since returning to the states from Afghanistan.
No red flags were raised, no secondguessing ensued. Under Texas law for a private sale, no background check is needed when the seller is not a licensed gun dealer.
“First off, it was my belief he would have passed a background check,” said Crews. “He didn’t seem weird in any way, just a normal guy.”
A short conversation ensued, mostly small talk as Johnson made sure the rifle was in working condition. Crews, who conducted a bit of an online background check on Johnson, felt like he’d made a fair deal with a good guy.
“He seems like he’s 100% on the up and up,” recounted Crews, who said his decision to sell the gun was a simple matter of economics.
“You really wanna know why?” he asked. “To afford plane tickets to go a wedding . . . . That’s why I sold the gun.
“The wedding was in Mexico, which is why the tickets were so expensive, which is why I needed to start downsizing my collection.”
It wasn’t until this past Friday, when Crews, playing drums with his band Monkey Sphere in San Antonio, ever heard the name Micah Johnson again.
He couldn’t remember the name at all initially. After playing Friday night’s gig, his guitar player asked, “Was his name Micah?”
“And I said, ‘That sounds like it might be it,’ ” recalled Crews. “And he said, ‘Micah Johnson’ — that sounds even more like it. ’Cause I don’t have a TV in my house.’ ”
Once the story came together, Crews found himself badly shaken. He says his interest in guns is now gone, and he opted out of a weekend deal to buy a shotgun.
“It’s the fact that I feel partially responsible for all this s--- that’s happened,” he said. “That’s it. That’s what it is . . . . He’s just one guy who bought a gun from me, and he decided to do something completely awful.” POLICE IN Baton Rouge, La., foiled a plot to kill cops after nine guns were stolen from a pawnshop over the weekend, officials said Tuesday. Four people — including a 13-year-old boy — were said to be part of the “substantial credible threat” to shoot Baton Rouge officers in retaliation for the death of Alton Sterling. Sterling was shot dead by a Baton Rouge officer last week. His death, and that of Philando Castile in Minnesota, set off protests across the country and led to the fatal shooting of five cops in Dallas. Baton Rouge police said they took the threat seriously after the Dallas officers were murdered Thursday at a rally. Three people, including the 13-year-old involved in the burglary, have been arrested and seven of nine guns stolen have been recovered. A fourth suspect is still at large. ST. PAUL, Minn. — President Obama made condolence calls Tuesday to the families of police shooting victims Alton Sterling and Philando Castile as funeral plans for both were finalized.
Castile’s mother, Valerie, placed the call from the President on speaker as reporters stood listening after a news conference in Minnesota.
“I appreciate you calling and voicing your concern about how he died,” Valerie Castile told the President. “I want you to know he was a humanitarian, a hard worker, and he loved his job. The community loved him. It’s heartbreaking.”
Obama replied, “We’re thinking of you. I’ll be speaking about it today in Dallas.”
“I don’t condone violence. Violence begets violence,” the heartbroken mom told Obama.
“I completely agree,” the President said before hanging up.
Castile, 32, was shot to death during a seemingly routine traffic stop for a broken taillight in the predominantly white St. Paul suburb of Falcon Heights. Both he and Sterling, 37, were black.
The President also called Sterling’s kin in Baton Rouge from Air Force One as he flew to the memorial service for five police officers slain in Dallas by a black gunman.
A Friday wake and funeral at Southern University are set for Sterling, who was shot to death last week by one of two white police officers who slammed him to the ground in a convenience store parking lot.
The family of Castile announced the funeral for Philando was set for Thursday at the Cathedral of St. Paul. “My son is the king,” said Valerie Castile. “He was a martyr. So I thought that would be the best place for his funeral.”