The man who opened fire in a Wisconsin Sikh temple posted frequent comments on Internet forums for skinheads, repeatedly exhorting members to act more decisively to support their cause.
Two days after Wade Michael Page's attack, authorities were trying to determine why the 40-year-old Army veteran targeted total strangers in a house of worship.
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| Wade Page (AP Photo) |
Detectives cautioned they might never know for sure. But the picture of Page that began to develop suggested he was a white supremacist who wanted to see his beliefs advanced with action.
Page, who was shot to death by police, described himself as a member of the "Hammerskins Nation," a skinhead group rooted in Texas that has branches in Australia and Canada.
Meanwhile, the temple's president and two police officers are being hailed for saving lives during the shootings at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin that killed six worshippers.
Officials say temple president Satwant Singh Kaleka stared down the gunman Sunday. They say he fought back and even tried to stab the man with a butter knife before taking two fatal gunshots to the leg. The fight gave women and children inside extra time to seek cover.
Oak Creek Police Lt. Brian Murphy was ambushed, shot nine times and left for dead. But he told his colleagues wounded worshippers needed their attention more. He remains in critical condition.
And when Officer Sam Lenda came under fire in the temple parking lot, he shot back, downing the gunman who refused to drop his weapon.
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