Former Las Vegan accused of shooting officer ‘hated police’

Thursday, Jan. 29, 1998 | 1:53 a.m.

Steven Dons, 37, who lived in Las Vegas for nearly 14 years, was arrested Tuesday in the shooting of three police officers in Portland. One officer was killed in the gunfire.

Las Vegan Chelle Moore, the former wife of Dons' current roommate in Portland, said Dons is a man infatuated with firearms who hated police because of his numerous arrests in Las Vegas.

"He scared the hell out of me," Moore said Wednesday. "He (Dons) is a very, very scary person. He was always saying, 'All police should be dead.' He said if they ever messed with him, they'd be dead."

Dons is charged with murder of a police officer, two counts of attempted murder of a police officer and other charges in connection with an incident Tuesday.

Portland police veteran Colleen Waibel, 44, was shot to death as she and a group of officers entered Dons' home during a narcotics raid.

Authorities said Waibel's killer apparently used a high-powered assault weapon.

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