The Lone Dallas Sniper Was Army Veteran “Upset At White People”

Johnson reportedly told the police that he was upset at white people and wanted to “kill them”.

Micah Johnson, was a suspect in the sniper slayings of five law enforcement officers in Dallas. (Photo: AP)

A black US Army reservist who served in the Afghan war and said he wanted to “kill white people” took part in an attack in which five police officers were shot dead at a protest decrying police shootings of black men, officials said on Friday.

Seven other police officers and two civilians were wounded in the ambush in downtown Dallas on Thursday night, officials said. Police killed the gunman, identified by a US government source as Micah Xavier Johnson, after cornering him in a parking lot, ending an hours-long standoff.

The Louisiana and Minnesota shootings, both now the subject of federal investigations, were the latest in a series of police killings that have triggered protests over police use of force against black suspects and racial disparities in the American criminal justice system.

Black Lives Matter, a decentralised movement, arose after those killings to protest the treatment of black people by US law enforcement.

An Army veteran, Johnson tried to take refuge in a parking garage and exchanged gunfire with police. (Photo: AP)

Micah Johnson Was a Member of ‘Black Panther Party Mississippi

Dallas Police Chief David Brown told reporters that the Johnson had confessed he was angry about the Louisiana and Minnesota killings.

The suspect said he was upset about Black Lives Matter. The suspect said he was upset at white people. The suspect stated that he wanted to kill white people, especially white officers. This was a well-planned, well-thought-out, evil tragedy by these suspects. And we won’t rest until we bring everyone involved to justice. We are determined to not let this person steal this democracy from us.

Dallas Police Chief David Brown

Johnson was a member of the group “Black Panther Party Mississippi” on Facebook, which has over 200 members.

Earlier this month he shared a video showing what he described as white people killing what looked like dolphins or whales.

“Look at the joy on their faces. Why do so many whites (not all) enjoy killing and participating in the death of innocent beings,” Johnson wrote. Its authenticity could not be immediately confirmed.

The US Army said Johnson had served as a private first class in the Army Reserve, made up of part-time soldiers, and was deployed to Afghanistan from November 2013 to July 2014.

Johnson served from March 2009 to April 2015 and was a carpentry and masonry specialist with the 420th Engineering Brigade based in Texas.

Authorities said that the gunman fired at least some of the shots in the attack but have not ruled out that other shooters were involved. Details on how the shootings unfolded remained unclear.

A Twitter account describing itself as representing the Black Lives Matter movement sent the message: “Black Lives Matter advocates dignity, justice and freedom. Not murder.”