Sniper accused says shootings were well planned

JOHN LEE MALVO, the 17-year-old accused of a series of sniper attacks that terrorised the Washington DC suburbs, has admitted during a seven-hour interrogation that he carried out some of the killings, it was reported yesterday.

The Washington Post, citing sources, said Malvo provided details about several of the killings, and admitted shooting FBI analyst Linda Franklin on October 14.

Malvo had already been charged with capital murder in the case, and was being interviewed after being moved to Fairfax County, Virginia, where he will be tried.

Malvo and John Allen Muhammad (41), are charged with carrying out the shooting spree over a three-week period in Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC. They are also accused of shootings in Alabama, Georgia and Louisiana.

In all, the pair have been accused of shooting 19 people, killing 13 of them. Two other shootings are under investigation.

Robert Horan, the Fairfax County prosecutor charged by Attorney General John Ashcroft with prosecuting the teenager, could not be reached last night.

According to The Post, Malvo told investigators the shootings were well planned and involved scouting missions and that he and his partner behaved like soldiers, one serving as a lookout and the other as the shooter.

The pair used two-way radios to communicate, the paper reported, and if traffic or other conditions weren't acceptable, they would not shoot.

Sources said Malvo also said the pair moved around to create confusion, and watched news coverage of their crimes.

Malvo was chatty and even boastful during the interview, sources told The Post, but refused to talk about Muhammad or to even mention his name, instead using the term "we".

Muhammad, who is facing capital murder charges for the murder of a man as he pumped petrol at a Manassas gas station, refused police efforts to interview him in Prince William County, remaining silent for hours and refusing to give his name to a booking clerk.

The Post said the sources spoke on the condition they would not be identified, and declined to discuss other shootings that Malvo allegedly described in his interview.

Michael Arif, appointed to head Malvo's defence team, has said he will work to suppress any statements Malvo made during his session with federal and local officials.

"If in fact those are the statements Mr Malvo made, there will be a motion to suppress those statements, as certain as the sun rises in the east," Arif told The Post.

Malvo and Arif met for two and a half hours on Saturday, the lawyer told The Post.