Bus driver shot dead as sniper strikes again

THE Washington serial sniper was feared to have struck again yesterday after a bus driver was shot dead with a single bullet.

Father-of-two Conrad Johnson was killed early as he stood on the steps of his bus in Maryland, 15 miles north of the US capital.

The 35-year-old was airlifted to Suburban Hospital in Bethesda where he underwent emergency surgery, but doctors were unable to save him. He died four hours later.

Police set up a massive dragnet around the area of the shooting, blocking traffic in and out of Washington DC.

Helicopters were also scrambled in a bid to snare the mystery gunman who is known to have killed nine people and wounded three since the attacks began on October 2.

Bloodhounds were used to scour the woods near the scene of the attack in a suburban area of Silver Spring. Ballistics experts were running tests to see if the sniper was behind the shooting. Police said they were working on the assumption that it could be linked.

The attack was close to the sniper’s first five murders in Maryland but occurred earlier in the morning than previous attacks and in a residential area. Resident Rosetta Talley, who was walking her dog nearby at the time, said she heard one shot.

All previous victims have been hit by a single bullet.

Mr Johnson, who had worked for the Montgomery County bus company for 10 years, had pulled into a staging area used by drivers when he was gunned down.

He was described as a devoted father whose main interest outside his family was basketball.

Montgomery County Police Chief Charles Moose, who is leading the hunt, said: “We remain concerned about the safety of all the people in our region. We realise the person or people involved in this is capable of killing people of all ages, all races, all genders and all professions, at different times on different days in all locations.”

Investigators publicly pleaded with the person they believe to be the killer to call back. Mr Moose said a message was received from someone of high interest to investigators, but the call had been muddled.

He said: “The person you called could not hear everything you said. The audio was unclear and we want to get it right. Call us back so that we can clearly understand.”

It followed a letter left at the scene of the last confirmed attack in Ashland, Virginia, which seriously wounded a man, 37, on Saturday.

The handwritten note is believed to have threatened more attacks unless he was paid money.

The letter was the second from the sniper to the authorities. A tarot death card found on October 7 outside a targeted school read: “Dear Policeman, I am God”.

Police said two men detained in Virginia on Monday and quizzed over the sniper attacks had nothing to do with the case.