Suspect found dead after gunning down Southwest employee in Oklahoma airport shooting

  • 8 years ago
OKLAHOMA CITY — Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City was closed for most of Tuesday following a shooting that took the life of one Southwest Airlines employee.

KFOR reports that the 52-year-old shooting victim was identified as Michael Winchester, a former University of Oklahoma football player whose son plays for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Winchester was reportedly shot while walking near the airport parking garage shortly before 1 p.m. on Tuesday. He was found wounded and bleeding and brought to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.

Officers arrived at the scene and immediately put the airport on lockdown. Flights were suspended, vehicles barred from entering and leaving, and passengers told to seek cover.

Police armed with rifles searched the complex for the suspect, and later found him dead inside the parking garage hours later. His body was found in a red pickup truck. There was a gunshot wound to his head, which was believed to be self-inflicted, according to News9.

Authorities are still investigating the incident and have yet to disclose a motive for the killing, which some media outlets suggest was a premeditated act.