In joint interview, Chief and Sheriff share new details about gunman’s ‘paranoia’ before killing two officers

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — 33-year-old Christopher Murphy was driving drunk and high around Syracuse before using what the District Attorney calls a “cannibalized” and illegal assault weapon to murder two officers.

His behavior even scared away two friends before the rampage.

Syracuse Police Chief Joe Cecile and Onondaga County Sheriff Toby Shelley opened up about the investigation and revealed new details on what happened leading up to the shooting, including the routine game of darts at a bar before.

“According to some bartenders, they had some drinks, buckets of beer, whatever, maybe a few shots. They leave there, and that’s where the police involvement starts. Somehow, they get from the End Zone to Tipp Hill, the mall, Murphy is driving erratically,” said Shelley.

Murphy was speeding at 100 miles per hour when officer Michael Jensen and his partner tried to pull him over. License plate readers near the mall helped SPD track him to his home in Salina.

“Some of the information we received in affidavits, seemed to indicate that he was trying to provoke an interaction with police, for whatever reason,” Cecile explained.

Murphy’s drinking partner, alarmed by his behavior, left in an Uber. Another friend, who joined in that this point, was there as police officers pulled up.

“Murphy starts talking about a form of paranoia, I guess… that the police were coming to get him,” Shelley said.

Police were outside his house, when Murphy grabbed a homemade assault rifle loaded with 40 rounds of ammunition and came out firing.

“Without the pieces put together, it seems that much more senseless. But I don’t know if we’ll ever put the pieces together,” Cecile said.

Now, these commanders are focused on keeping the pieces of their forces together.

Watch the full interview with Chief Cecile and Sheriff Shelley on Newsmakers with Andrew Donovan on Friday, April 19, at 12:30 p.m. on NewsChannel 9.

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