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Thu 9 Dec, 2004 07:30 am
COLUMBUS, Ohio (Dec. 9) - A man charged onstage at a packed heavy metal show and opened fire, killing at least four people including guitarist Darrel Abbott before an arriving officer shot him to death, authorities said.
Columbus police department spokeswoman Sherry Mercurio identified three of the victims of Wednesday's shooting as Abbott, guitarist with the heavy metal rock band Damageplan, and two other men, Nathan Bray and Erin Halk.
Damageplan had just begun their first song at the Alrosa Villa when the man opened fire, first targeting Abbott, shooting him multiple times at point-blank range, a witness said.
Abbott, one of metal's top guitarists, and his brother, Damageplan drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott, were original members of thrash rock pioneers Pantera, one of the most popular metal bands of the early 1990s.
The witness, 22-year-old Chris Couch, said he was standing about 30 feet away from the stage when he noticed a man wearing a hooded sweatshirt and hockey jersey walk up to the stage, followed by a bouncer and another club employee.
The man in the jersey climbed onto the stage, started yelling and shot the guitarist five or six times at close range, Couch said. He said the gunman also shot a bouncer who pulled him off the musician.
Columbus police spokesman Sgt. Brent Mull said that after shooting at members of the band, the gunman fired into the crowd. Mull said a police officer who arrived shortly after the shooting began shot and killed the gunman.
"If the officer wasn't as close as he was, I think this would have been a lot worse," he said. "It was a chaotic scene, just a horrific scene."
After the shooting began, Couch and a friend headed for the exit along with a tide of hundreds of fans.
"It was definitely a grudge. It was against something," Couch said.
Amanda Stankus, 19, who attended the show with Couch, said she initially thought the shooting was part of the show. "I just saw the guitarist fall down, and we decided to get out of there," she said.
Other members of Damageplan include vocalist Patrick Lachman and bass player Bob Zilla, according to the band's Web site.
A message left with Atlantic Records, which oversees the record label on which Damageplan records, was not immediately returned.
Damageplan's Web site said Darrel and Vinnie Abbott grew up in the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas area where their father Jerry Abbott owned a recording studio. Another entry on the site lists the elder Abbott as a country-western songwriter.
Telephone numbers for both Darrell and Jerry Abbott are unlisted and could not be reached early Thursday by The Associated Press.
Pantera, known for its brutally hard, fast and aggressive sound, recorded four albums between 1990 and 1996. They attracted a massive cult following and the band's third release, "Far Beyond Driven," debuted at No. 1 in 1994, surprising chart-watchers and critics alike.
Sad isnt it.
People gun each other down with what seems like no feeling.
There are 3 threads devoted to Dimebag. He has alot of fans . Sad that his music and talent are now gone.. all due to someone with a grudge.
What was the motive?
Have they determined that yet?
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