A man identified by authorities as the individual who attempted to carry out a mass shooting in Yellowstone National Park last year was reported to have espoused racist sentiments in the months leading up to his foiled attack, according to court documents disclosed by prosecutors.
In filings submitted to the U.S. District Court in Wyoming within the past week, federal prosecutors stated that 28-year-old Samson Fussner had meticulously orchestrated what they described as a potential mass shooting, labeling it as “a terror attack,” and had confided his intentions in his brother. Fussner purportedly voiced his troubling thoughts about his mental health struggles, racist ideologies, and detailed plans for carrying out mass shootings, notably doing so within the confines of the employee dining room and during a fireworks exhibition in West Yellowstone, Montana, as detailed in the court records.
The prosecutors further alleged in the official documents that Fussner had a documented history of vocalizing white supremacist and antisemitic beliefs and was actively engaged as a member of an online platform dedicated to propagating such extremist views. In an attempt to secure the forfeiture of Fussner’s weapons, ammunition, and SUV, which were confiscated during the course of the investigation, the prosecutors presented the court with these incriminating details.
The assailant purportedly disclosed his violent intentions to his brother mere days before ultimately perishing in a confrontation with park rangers, as indicated in the court records. Through text message exchanges, Fussner reportedly expressed disdain for Yellowstone, utilizing derogatory racial slurs to denigrate individuals within the park and dubbing the environment a “hellscape.” As outlined in the documents, Fussner was employed by a private enterprise authorized to conduct operations within Yellowstone by the National Park Service.
Moreover, Fussner had allegedly conveyed to his brother an unsettling fixation on a female acquaintance at the park, whom he later held captive before the fatal altercation with park rangers, according to the court documents. During a two-hour ordeal on the evening of July 3, armed with a handgun and a knife, Fussner reportedly confined the unidentified woman in her dormitory after she rebuffed his romantic advances. In a calculated move, Fussner purportedly secreted the firearm moments before midnight upon the arrival of the woman’s roommate, who inadvertently prompted his departure when stepping away for a shower. The woman promptly alerted security personnel associated with the private enterprise that employed Fussner.
Law enforcement officers from the park service swiftly mobilized to secure the area encompassing the dormitory and the employee dining area, law enforcement officials confirmed. Fussner initiated gunfire upon being sighted emerging from a wooded region the following morning of July 4th, prompting a response from the rangers who returned fire.
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