The man arrested and charged in the killing of an Indiana police officer at an FBI office had been a mayoral candidate and federal prisons employee, media outlets reported.
Shane Meehan, 44, was charged Thursday with premeditated murder of a federal agent in the death of Terre Haute police officer Greg Ferency, who was an FBI task force officer.
Meehan is accused of driving to an FBI office in the western Indiana city and lobbing a Molotov cocktail over a gate Wednesday afternoon. Shortly afterward, Ferency walked out of the office and Meehan shot him, authorities said.
Ferency and an FBI agent returned fire during a gun battle, and Meehan was shot twice before he drove away in his truck, authorities said. He was found at a local hospital and underwent surgery. Meehan remained in custody at the hospital Thursday, WISH reported.
Ferency was killed in the shooting.
Investigators searched Meehan’s truck and found a handgun, ammunition and three Molotov cocktails, according to court documents
The Federal Bureau of Prisons told the Indianapolis Star that Meehan was a corrections officer at the federal prison in Terre Haute from 2005 to 2017.
Two years later, Meehan ran for mayor of Terre Haute, WTHI reported. As an Independent candidate, Meehan received 117 votes, less than 1% of the turnout.
In an interview about his 2019 mayoral campaign with WTWO, Meehan listed public safety and infrastructure at schools as top priorities, saying gun violence at U.S. schools puts children at risk.
“I think a lot of it has to do with the kids and what happens at home and everything else going on around them causes a lot of pressure and lot of things that are happening that shouldn’t be happening,” Meehan told WTWO.
Ferency was a 30-year veteran of the Terre Haute Police Department and had served on the FBI task force since 2010, officials said.
A motive for the shooting hasn’t been released.
“I want to offer the deepest sympathy of the FBI to the family, friends and colleagues of Detective Ferency,” FBI Indianapolis Special Agent in Charge Paul Keenan said in a statement. “We will work day and night to carefully examine the circumstances of the shooting and we are dedicated to honoring Greg’s memory through a meticulous investigation.”