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29 March 2024

Spa shooting suspect threatened wife with acid

Published
By AP

A US woman whose husband is suspected in a fatal spa shooting said he threatened to throw acid in her face and jealously terrorized her "every waking moment," according to court documents.

Authorities say Radcliffe Franklin Haughton, 45, killed three women, wounded four others, and then turned the gun on himself Sunday at the Wisconsin spa where his wife worked. Police haven't said if Zina Haughton, 42, was among those killed or wounded.

In a written request for a restraining order filed Oct. 8, Zina Haughton said her husband was convinced she was cheating on him and that he also vowed to burn her and her family with gas. He said he would kill her if she ever left him or called the police, according to the court papers obtained Monday by The Associated Press.

"His threats terrorize my every waking moment," she wrote.

Haughton was arrested earlier this month for slashing his wife's tires. She was granted a four-year restraining order on Thursday.

Under the order, Haughton was prohibited from owning a firearm.

Police responded last year to reports of domestic violence at the Haughton home. Radcliffe Haughton was charged with disorderly conduct, but the charge was later dismissed because a witness failed to appear in court.

Brookfield Police Chief Dan Tushaus said he wasn't aware of a motive in Sunday's shooting.

"I can tell you we're not seeking additional suspects," he said at a news conference Sunday evening. "The community can feel safe."

A .40-caliber semiautomatic handgun was used in the attack, said agent Tom Ahern of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

While officers initially thought the gunman had fled the building, they later found his body in a locked room. Tushaus said investigators were still working to identify the victims.

Haughton's father, Radcliffe Haughton, Sr., spoke to The Associated Press shortly before police announced that they had found his son's body. He said he had last spoken to his son a few days ago but didn't know anything was wrong. He begged his son to turn himself in.

After learning of his son's death, he said only: "This is very sad."

It was the second mass shooting in Wisconsin this year. Wade Michael Page, a 40-year-old Army veteran and white supremacist, killed six people and injured three others before fatally shooting himself Aug. 5 at a Sikh temple.