WILMINGTON, Ohio — A day after a hours-long standoff between law enforcement and Columbus’ men resulted in the man’s death, an employee of a nearby company reflected on what she had seen.
Ricky Schiffer, 42, fled north on Interstate 71 Thursday morning after attempting to break into an FBI office in Cincinnati on Thursday morning. and a nearby business exchanged gunfire with authorities who witnessed it.
What you need to know
- Holly Carpenter saw dozens of law enforcement vehicles driving down the highway in front of her workplace on Thursday.
- Ricky Schiffer was finally identified as the suspect in the shooting after hours-long standoff
- Schiffer reportedly attempted to break into the FBI offices in Cincinnati.
Holly Carpenter said she was just doing her job when she realized something was wrong.
“I just came back here and was watering [flowers] I heard a lot of sirens as I answered some questions,” Carpenter said.
Holly Carpenter waters plants at her shop near Wilmington. (Katie Capsta/Spectrum News 1)
Siren belonged to a cruiser of the Ohio Highway Patrol Corps pursuing Schiffer. After a lengthy standoff, law enforcement officers shot Schiffer dead.
Carpenter was down the street when the incident happened outside Wilmington.
“It’s pretty quiet,” she said of the rural community.
Holly Carpenter was at her store near Wilmington and a standoff broke out on the road. (Katie Capsta/Spectrum News 1)
She said she was relieved to learn that authorities had the suspect contained.
“I knew he wouldn’t be here unless he was running in the corn. Running in the cornfield is not a good time,” she said. “And I thought it would be improbable to pass through here on a cornfield.”
Carpenter said he knew he wouldn’t be around, so he closed the shop early.
“There won’t be any customers, and it would be safer to stay away,” Carpenter said.
She hopes things stay on the quiet side.
Holly Carpenter waters plants at her shop near Wilmington. (Katie Capsta/Spectrum News 1)
“I mean, I feel calmer,” she said. “How likely is it that something will happen again this soon?”
Public records show that Schiffer’s most recent address was in Columbus.
Neither the FBI nor the Ohio Highway Patrol have commented further on the incident.
