The following is a condensation of an article by Staff Writer Thomas W. Krause in The Macon (GA) Telegraph on September 14, 2002, under the headline "A major in the Barnesville Police Department shot and killed himself."

A major in the Barnesville (GA) Police Department shot and killed himself1ate last week minutes after the police chief and a police captain asked him questions regarding missing evidence, the County Sheriff said in a statement released Friday.

The 40 year-old Major was accompanied to his home by the Chief and a Captain, who had received information that the Major might be in possession of items missing from the Police Department evidence room. At least two missing items were found at the Major's home, the Chief said.

The Major walked outside to his patrol car and returned carrying a handgun that was not his service weapon. He began to make threatening comments and gestures toward himself and the other two officers, then removed his uniform shirt, hung it on a fence post and said to tell his wife and children that he loved them. He entered the passenger seat of an abandoned car on his property and fatally shot himself in the chest. The chief and captain called an ambulance and the sheriff's office, and then the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI).

Late in the afternoon, a search warrant was executed and the Major's house was entered. Inside, GBI agents found military explosives and ordnance. A number of firearms were also found. The GBI is continuing an investigation into the explosives, the Major's death and the circumstances that led to the shooting.

The pastor of a local church said he had performed the marriage for the Major and his wife, who subsequently had three children. He described the Major as very interested in others, teaching karate classes and running a self defense class for women at the church. He said, the Major "was the type of guy who enjoyed having a good time. He enjoyed music, and played in a blues/rock band."