NZ woman not letting Washington sniper control her life

12.00pm

A New Zealander living in Virginia says people feel like they are under siege after a sniper killed nine people in the area.

But Stephanie Wallis, from Gore, said she had not let fear change her life.

"I kind of figure there are so many million people living in this area that the chances of it being me are very, very slim," she told NZPA today.

"We still have a dog, I still walk at night and go running at night."

Ms Wallis has been working as an accountant for Cable and Wireless for about a year and has lived in the United States previously.

She said the killings were on top of everyone's minds.

"Everyone here is talking about it ... this is just terrorising everyone."

Fear of terrorist attacks after September 11 and the Bali bombings was adding to stress levels and some theories were interlinking the two issues.

Among strange theories she had heard was that the killer was called Michael and that was he was targeting a chain of craft stores with that name.

"That's pretty funny.

"But I think the terrorism theory is pretty weird myself."

People were crouching when they filled their cars with petrol and using stations away from highways.

There was also a feeling that a war against Iraq was imminent.

"Everyone's assuming it's going to go ahead ... personally I'm against it."

Ms Wallis is enjoying life and did not let the sniper stop her from participating in Washington's Army Ten-Miler race on Sunday morning along with 18,000 others.

Organisers had considered cancelling the race because of the sniper but decided to go ahead. It was cancelled last year because of the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Setting out on the run Ms Wallis said she felt safe because she had earlier seen a misleading newspaper front page that made her think the sniper had already been caught.

Tanks were in the area and army snipers on roof tops for security, partly because of the army involvement in the run.

The race loops from the Pentagon past monuments and the Capitol buildings before returning to the start point.

Running with such a large crowd was exciting.

"It was such a buzz it sent chills up your spine."

Meanwhile two men are being held for questioning in connection with the sniper attacks.

The two were taken into custody in Virginia earlier on Monday, two days after an attack at Ashland, Virginia, north of Richmond, that critically injured a 37-year-old man. Ballistics evidence linked that shooting to 11 others.

In a direct appeal to a caller involved in the investigation of the sniper shootings in Washington's suburbs, police on Monday asked for another call, saying a first conversation was partly inaudible.

"The person you called could not hear everything that you said; the audio was unclear and we want to get it right," Montgomery County Police Chief Charles Moose told reporters at a briefing, making clear he was sending a message to someone else.

"Call us back so that we can clearly understand," Moose said.

Moose is part of a task force investigating sniper shootings that have killed nine people and injured three in and around Washington.


- NZPA

Further reading:
The Washington sniper

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