Days after Alton Nolen attacked two women after losing his job, murder charges are expected to be filed against him on Monday.
Nolen lost his job at Vaughan Foods in Oklahoma last Thursday and after this, Nolen reportedly went to his former workplace and carried out acts of violence against his co-workers.
Nolen reportedly drove to the Vaughan Foods processing plant, and rammed his car into another vehicle at the entrance before he entered the building. Upon entering, it is believed he grabbed a knife, similar to those used on the production floor of Vaughan Foods, and beheaded 54-year-old Colleen Hufford, an employee at Vaughan Foods.
Then, Nolen supposedly attacked 43-year-old Traci Johnson, another employee in the plant, before he was stopped by gunfire. Mark Vaughan is the company’s chief operating officer as well as a reserve deputy sheriff for Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Department, and it was only after he shot Nolen the attack stopped.
Moore Police Sgt. Jeremy Lewis told the LA Times, detectives will recommend prosecutors to charge Nolen with first-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon.
After he was released from prison in 2013 on drug related charges, Nolen reportedly became more religious and co-workers at Vaughan Foods said he had tried to convert them to Islam.
A Facebook page under the name “Jah’Keem Yisrael,” was used by Nolen before the attacks according to CNN. The page contains pictures of Nolen as well as posts and pictures regarding Islam and the Quran. Some of these pictures are of al-Qaeda chiefs as well as the 9/11 attacks.
There were also disturbing posts on this Facebook page. One post reportedly showed a beheaded man with the quote, “I will instill terror into the hearts of the unbelievers: smite ye above their necks and smite all their fingertips off them.”
The Oklahoma Conference of Churches made a statement Saturday saying, “The Islamic Community of Oklahoma has consistently condemned all violence — most especially acts of violence ostensibly carried out in the name of Islam… Along with our Muslim brothers and sisters we affirm that true Islam is, in fact, a religion of peace and that those inflicting violence in the name of Islam are perverting Islam for their own ends.”
After undergoing surgery, Nolen spoke to investigators on Friday, but no details have emerged form these interviews.