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The arrest of a local man in the series of shootings that left six people dead and one wounded has raised as many questions as it has answered in this Central Valley city of 300,000 people.
Wesley Brownlee, 43, is expected to be arraigned Tuesday on multiple murder counts and other charges. Police said they received tips from the public that led them to Brownlee, whose alleged killing spree began 18 months ago in Oakland, 75 miles west of Stockton. Less than a week later, a woman was shot in Stockton and survived.
Fifteen months later came the first of five fatal shootings in Stockton over a span of less than three months. Four of the victims were walking when they were shot; one was sitting in a parked car.
“We have no reason why the pistol went dormant» for more than a year, Stockton Police Chief Stanley McFadden said. He also revealed no motive for the shootings.
Investigators relying on a tip from a local resident were following his car at 2 a.m. Saturday when they pulled the suspect over, concerned he might be poised to kill again.
«He was on a mission to kill. He was out hunting,» McFadden said. «We are sure we stopped another killing.»
He said the suspect was wearing dark clothing, a mask and was armed with a handgun.
