Suspect in Killing of Storeowner Over LGBTQ Flag Was Far-Right Conspiracist Who Promoted Christian Nationalism: Report
thenewcivilrightsmovement.comThe 27-year old man suspected of shooting and killing a 66-year old California store owner and mother of nine after confronting her for the LGBTQ pride flag outside her shop has been identified as a right-wing conspiracy theorist who promoted Christian nationalism and shared anti-LGBTQ content on social media. “Travis Ikeguchi, 27, shot Laura Ann Carleton, 66, on Friday after ‘yelling many homophobic slurs’ about the store’s pride flag, San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus said at a news conference Monday,” VICE reports Tuesday, calling the suspect “a far-right conspiracy theorist who shared deeply anti-LGBTQ and antisemitic content on his social media accounts.” Police tracked Ikeguchi after he fled the scene.
He was shot in a “lethal force encounter,” according to police. “When deputies confronted Travis Ikeguchi on foot about a mile from the store Friday night, he opened fire on them, striking multiple squad cars, San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus told reporters,” the Associated Press adds. “Deputies returned fire and shot Ikeguchi, who died at the scene, Dicus said.
No deputies were hurt.” READ MORE: ‘Traitor’: Tucker Carlson, Ahead of Trump Interview, Calls War in Ukraine ‘NATO War Against Russia’ “An LGBTQ group in nearby Lake Arrowhead said Carleton didn’t identify as a member of the LGBTQ+ community,” the AP also reports. “But she spent time helping and advocating for everyone, and she was defending her Pride flags placed in front of her shop on the night of the shooting, the group said.” VICE reports it reviewed the suspect’s “social media accounts on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, and the far-right social network Gab.” They “show that the shooter had fully embraced a wide range of
