The Idaho man arrested in the shooting of a prominent pastor sent a 21-page “manifesto” outlining his motives to his parents and several Gem State news outlets, the Washington Post reported Wednesday.
Kyle Odom, the lone suspect in Sunday’s shooting of Altar Church Rev. Tim Remington, took credit for Remington’s shooting in the rambling document, which was made public online. In the manifesto, Odom claims that his life was “ruined by an intelligent species of amphibian-humanoid from Mars” and that the shooting was a “last resort” effort to bring their existence “to the public’s attention.” He alleges that Remington and Altar Church’s outreach pastor John Padula were part of the vast alien conspiracy “hiding in plain sight.”
Odom also praises President Barack Obama and identifies many prominent members of the U.S. Congress as “noteworthy Martians.”
Odom was arrested Tuesday evening by Secret Service agents without incident after he allegedly threw computer flash drives and other items over the White House fence. The other objects have yet to be identified by hazardous materials and bomb teams, according to the Associated Press.
Odom’s arrest brings a close to a bizarre multi-day search that sprawled across several states.
Idaho police had been looking for the Iraq War veteran since Remington was critically wounded Sunday in a shooting spree in the parking lot of his Coeur d’Alene church. The AP reported that after the shooting, Odom fled the scene by car to Spokane, Washington before police lost his trail.
Despite the warrant for his arrest, Odom was then able to board a flight from Boise, Idaho to Washington, D.C.
Coeur d’Alene Police Chief Lee White told the AP that Odom has a history of mental illness. He noted in a Monday press conference that there was “no evidence” to suggest Remington’s shooting was linked to the invocation the pastor gave at a campaign rally for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) in Coeur d’Alene on Saturday.
Altar Church’s Padula told the AP that Odom had no connection with the church until he attended services on Sunday and shot the pastor.
Remington regained consciousness on Monday night and is expected to fully recover from gunshot wounds to his skull and back, according to the AP.
