The madman accused of massacring six people during a shooting rampage across Kalamazoo, Mich., told police his cellphone was controlling him as he drove across the city and murdered victims at random.
Jason Dalton, 45, was picking up fares for UberFeb. 20 when he says the ride-sharing app gained control of him “like artificial intelligence that can tap into your body,” a report obtained Monday by WOOD-TV reveals.
The Uber symbol on his phone turned into an inverted, colored five-point star known as the Eastern Star symbol before Dalton felt his body was taken over, the news station reported.
“Dalton acknowledged that he recognized the Uber symbol as being that of the Eastern Star and a devil head popped up on his screen and when he pressed the button on the app, that is when all the problems started,” police wrote in their report on the hours-long spree that left another two people wounded.
“It feels like it is coming from the phone itself and he didn’t know how to describe that.”
Six people were killed in the rampage.
Police on Monday also released cruiser dash camera video showing Dalton’s arrest early Feb. 21. Officers are heard yelling, “Stick your hands out the window!” and he does.
“Keep your hands out where we can see them!” The cops bark before they approach the car with guns drawn, then remove, search and cuff the accused killer.
The rampage started after Dalton allegedly shot Tianna Carruthers multiple timesoutside the Meadows Townhomes at 5:40 p.m., leaving her in serious condition. Two children walking with the 25-year-old mom were not injured.
About five hours later, he fatally shot Rich Smith and his 18-year-old son Tyler Smith, who were browsing the brightly-lit parking lot of a Kia dealership, police said.
Twenty minutes later, Dalton allegedly opened fire on four women parked outside a nearby Cracker Barrel restaurant, killing them all. The shooting also left 14-year-old Abigail Kopf clinging to her life in critical condition.