Supermarket rampage leaves four dead, one critical

Robert Macy

Thursday, June 3, 1999 | 5:03 a.m.

LAS VEGAS - A camouflage-clad man armed with a pump-action shotgun roamed through a suburban supermarket before sunrise Thursday, killing four employees and wounding a fifth. Police arrested him in the parking lot after talking him out of taking his own life.

Las Vegas police were alerted by a 911 call from inside the Albertsons supermarket as shots were being fired. They confronted a man with a goatee and shaved head who walked out the door with the shotgun.

"He came out of the store, he saw police and retreated back into the store. Then he came back out, he placed the gun to his head and officers were able to talk him into surrendering," Lt. Rick Alba said.

The standoff outside the store lasted eight minutes, police said.

The victims were all shot at close range, Officer Steve Meriwether said. The gunman chased some of the employees before shooting them, Clark County Sheriff Jerry Keller said.

The wounded employee was in critical condition.

"He shot the first employee he saw, then he continued firing shots. Some he chased and shot," Keller said. He refused to say if any employees were shot in the back or describe any of their wounds.

Zane Floyd, 23, a part-time bouncer at a sports bar who was honorably discharged from the Marine Corps in Camp Pendleton, Calif., less than a year ago, was arrested for investigation of murder and attempted murder.

Investigators don't believe robbery was the motive, but were baffled about what triggered the rampage, Alba said. Police have not found any connection between the suspect and the victims - three men and a woman - and there was no indication he had any prior run-ins at the store.

Fearing the gunman had an accomplice, police took at least three hours to search and clear the store, eventually finding two employees hiding in a walk-in vegetable cooler where they had taken cover.

Twenty-five people, including 14 employees, were in the 42,000-square foot store when the 911 call was made to police at 5:16 a.m., Keller said.

"There were people hiding throughout the store in various locations," Meriwether said. The victims were also found throughout the store. Keller said the gunman had additional ammunition for his 12-gauge shotgun.

Albertsons, which has 995 stores in 25 states, sent a counseling team to help employees cope with the shooting.

"We're just horrified by this. This is tragic, inexplicable and we are sickened by it," said Michael Read, vice president of public affairs at Albertsons' headquarters in Boise, Idaho.

Floyd was fired by Affirmative Security on May 14, but he didn't pick up his belongings and final paycheck until Wednesday night, said Laura Sellers, who has owned the security firm for more than three years.

"He was agitated last night, a little bit more sarcastic," she said.

She said she could not discuss the reasons he was fired. But she said since she had known him, "there was not one incident of aggression, violence or abrupt behavior."

Last weekend, Floyd moved from an apartment into a guest house behind his parents' home just two blocks from the supermarket, friends said.

Homicide detectives questioned Floyd's parents, Mike and Valerie, at their home, about two blocks from the supermarket.

"That's all they talked about is when he would be coming home from leave. They did everything they could for him. He didn't want for anything," said neighbor Cathy Downey.

Floyd served four years in the Marine Corps at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and was discharged in July 1998, said base spokesman Lt. Jeff Landis.

After the Marines, he started college but dropped out, Downey said. "It didn't last that long."

Floyd had worked one day a week for the last month as a bouncer at Sneakers, a sports bar in Las Vegas, said bar manager Tom Smith.

As news of the shootings spread through town, fellow Sneakers bouncer Tony Marquez drove up to the Floyd home, ran inside and spoke briefly with the parents.

"He's a regular 23-year-old guy who likes to party and hang out just like me. I don't understand what happened," Marquez said.

He said Floyd was popular and had a girlfriend. "Everyone who knows him loves him," he said.

The elder Floyd works for EG&G Special Projects, a government contractor in Las Vegas. His boss, who identified himself only as Mr. Carey, said he was trying to help console the family.

"They're in shock. They want to know how this happened. Their thoughts are with the victims," he said.

The supermarket is located in a shopping mall with about 20 other stores at one of the city's busiest intersections.

Survivors and relatives gathered across the parking lot at Carl Jr.'s restaurant. Many cried, some embraced newcomers.