Since the arrest of Scott Evans Dekraai, 41, a former sportfishing captain accused of murdering eight and wounding one at a Seal Beach hair salon, news agencies have been clamouring for a closer look into the life of the suspected killer.
Here's a quick rundown of what we know so far:
- In 2007, Dekraai was that killed deckhand Piper Cameron—cutting her in two as Dekraai tried to save her—and nearly severed Dekraai's legs.
- He was so disabled from the accident that he . He recently married that caretaker, Mindy, in the backyard of their Huntington Beach home.
- He has been .
- Dekraai filed for divorce from his second wife, Michelle, soon after the tugboat accident. Since then, he has fought with her in court over custody of their son. Most recently, the two appeared in court together Tuesday.
- Dekraai owned a T-shirt company, Bendo, more than a decade ago. Tagline for the shirts? "Combat Fishing Gear."
- He was described as an who did "squidlike" abstracts.
- Neighbor Stephanie Malchow said Dekraai shared gardening tips and plants, gave birthday gifts to newborns and joined the Neighborhood Watch program. "I don’t want people to think he is just an evil monster," she said. "He’s a nice guy, but he must have snapped."
- The truck believed to belong to Dekraai has a license plate holder reading "Help Save America www.JoinTheTeaParty.us"
- In August 2010, Dekraai sent $300 to a special interest group called Stop This Insanity, which formerly owned the website JoinTheTeaParty.us.
- When police found Dekraai two blocks from the salon where the massacre took place, he was wearing a bulletproof vest.
- Contrary to some news reports saying Dekraai is a former Marine, Maj. Shawn Haney of the U.S. Marine Corps said he does not show up on any of their enlistment records.
http://patch.com/A-mPsL#comment_1602557
"'I've known him since he was little,' said Don Ashley, owner of Long Beach's Pierpoint Landing, a sportfishing company where Dekraai worked for about 10 years. 'He was a good guy. He loved fishing and being out on the water.' Ashley, who went to Wilson High School with Dekraai's parents, said Dekraai's grandfather began bringing him down to the harbor to volunteer on the waterfront at age 12." http://www.presstelegram.com/ci_19105724
If people are going to say he's crazy based on the fact that he's a tea party supporter, then by the same logic, they'd have to conclude that he's crazy because he's a Raiders supporter ... because you know how insane Raiders fans are. "Raiders fan what a surprise" There's definitely a connection.