New insight into Roundy’s shooting

Documents from Oconomowoc released

While a motive for the March shooting at the Roundy’s Distribution Center in Oconomowoc has not been found, new documents obtained from law enforcement agencies detail the actions of the shooter before he killed two coworkers.

On March 16, Fraron Cornelius, 41, of Wauwatosa shot and killed Kevin Kloth, 51, of Germantown and Kevin Schneider, 39, of West Allis. Cornelius died by suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after a subsequent police chase in Milwaukee County.

Documents released Thursday by the Oconomowoc Police Department and Waukesha County Sheriff ’s Department show that Cornelius was believed to have clashed with the two victims over his work ethic for years leading up to the shooting.

And a discussion with family members — scheduled for the night of the shooting — about possibly taking Cornelius’ terminally ill mother off life support also appeared to weigh heavily on his mind, records show.

Still, law enforcement announced in early May that they “exhausted all investigative methods” and could not determine a clear motive, nor evidence of premeditation, after interviewing more than 200 members of Roundy’s staff and family of the victims and shooter.

Here are the main takeaways of the investigative files released Thursday:

The suspect reportedly did not get along with the victims

Multiple Roundy’s workers told law enforcement after the shooting they heard rumors that Cornelius and the two victims did not get along, but almost none of them, including supervisors, had direct knowledge of any conflicts. The three men had worked together for about 20 years.

However, one coworker, a 25-year veteran at Roundy’s who had known and worked with Cornelius since he was 18, said Cornelius and the two victims would clash over Cornelius’ work ethic.

The coworker said he witnessed Schneider yell at Cornelius for sleeping in a break room about five years ago.

Additionally, he said Cornelius told him multiple times, going back several years, that he suspected Schneider and Kloth were “snitches,” who got him in trouble. Cornelius received a number of verbal and written warnings over the years about not meeting productivity goals, according to internal disciplinary records reviewed by police.

The coworker said that, despite being known as a level-headed person, Cornelius made it “well known” he didn’t like them and would refer to them in disparaging ways.

A lead supervisor at the distribution center told police he had fielded complaints about Cornelius’ effort as recently as January, after two coworkers — not Schneider or Kloth — caught him sleeping on the job.

Cornelius received an informal warning about it and was not in danger of losing his job or receiving harsh discipline, the supervisor said.

A review of surveillance camera

footage on March 16 showed that Cornelius did not interact with the two victims before the shooting that day.

Suspect faced decision to take mother off life support

The night of the shooting, Cornelius and his family were scheduled to decide whether they should take his mother off life support after her health declined in recent months, his brother, Eric Cornelius, told investigators.

Six months prior, the mother moved in with Fraron Cornelius in Wauwatosa, where he and the rest of the family cared for her daily. Cornelius had been handling the situation appropriately, his brother told investigators.

Multiple employees told law enforcement it was known at Roundy’s that Cornelius had been taking care of his mother, and it was understood that she meant a lot to him.

Several employees told investigators that Cornelius was generally jovial and conversational at work. But on the day of the shooting, he appeared distant, sad and untalkative.

Less than an hour before the shooting, the same coworker who spoke to Cornelius about Schneider and Kloth asked Cornelius about her condition. He initially just stared at the coworker but eventually answered that she was on a ventilator.

“Me and my brothers got to make a decision after work here,” he said.

The coworker told police he thought the situation with Cornelius and his mother may have caused him to “blow a bearing.”

However, a captain with the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department said earlier in May that investigators were not sure whether Cornelius’ mother’s illness played a part in the shooting.

Timeline of events

On March 16, Cornelius clocked in for work shortly before 10 a.m. and left the building only briefly after 8:30 p.m. to run out to the parking lot. Coworkers noticed he was not his usual talkative self.

According to a text message from Cornelius at 9:52 p.m., he was set to meet with two family members to discuss how to proceed with their mother’s health circumstances. Initially, they were supposed to meet at 10:30, but Cornelius rescheduled for 11:30.

At 10:11 p.m., Cornelius drove over to a dock on a forklift, where Schneider was sweeping the floor. Surveillance cameras captured Cornelius walking up to Schneider, pointing what looks to be a gun at him, and firing. According to a summary of the video, Cornelius then walks away casually. Officers later located one gunshot wound to Schneider’s head.

Cornelius was then recorded driving the forklift over to a walk-in freezer on another side of the distribution center and briefly stepping inside. Supervisors told law enforcement that Cornelius did not work in that particular area of the sprawling building, but Kloth did.

Some employees were told they could leave early the night of March 16 if they wanted. Kloth told a supervisor around 10:15 p.m. that he would be out of the building by 11 p.m.

At 10:34 p.m., Cornelius is seen in surveillance videos entering a secondfloor men’s locker room and leaving two minutes later, according to the summary. Kloth was later found in the locker room with a gunshot wound to the back of the head.

Cornelius left the Roundy’s facility around 10:40 in his black Toyota Camry, about the same time that someone found Schneider and reported there may have been an industrial accident.

Emergency personnel responded, and by 11 p.m., Schneider and Kloth were pronounced dead. Soon after, law enforcement began to suspect foul play and ordered the building locked down.

At 4:58 a.m., Cornelius was spotted by Milwaukee police near North 97th Street and West Capitol Drive and a pursuit ensued. It ended after Cornelius crashed his vehicle into a residence in the 9200 block of West Townsend Street in Wauwatosa. Cornelius then died by suicide.