Solved case · 2012
The short answer
On October 21, 2012, Radcliffe Franklin Haughton shot and killed three women, including his estranged wife, and wounded four others at the Azana Spa in Brookfield, Wisconsin, before setting a fire and killing himself.
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Suggest coverage for Azana Spa shootingOn October 21, 2012, a mass shooting occurred at the Azana Spa in Brookfield, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. Radcliffe Franklin Haughton, 45, arrived at the spa by taxi, stopping first at a nearby Burger King before entering the building at 11:09 a.m. after spotting his estranged wife's car in the parking lot. He was confronted by his wife, Zina Haughton, who tried to calm him, but he grabbed her by the hair, fired shots into the floor, and forced everyone in the spa to lie down before shooting multiple people. He fatally shot two women and wounded others, including a pregnant woman, before finally shooting and killing Zina Haughton. His gun jammed while reloading, allowing the spa's former owner to escape. Haughton then locked an exit door, started a fire upstairs, called his brother to tell him "all hell is breaking loose," and died by suicide inside the building.
Three women were killed: Zina Haughton, 42, of Brown Deer, Wisconsin; Cary L. Robuck, 32, of Racine; and Maelyn M. Lind, 38, of Merton. Zina Haughton was shot multiple times, Robuck was shot once in the neck, and Lind was shot in the head and chest. Four other women were wounded, including one who was seven months pregnant and shot in the neck; all were expected to survive and were treated at Froedtert Hospital. A total of 19 people were removed from the spa, including the injured.
In the immediate aftermath, law enforcement searched the area around the spa and the nearby Brookfield Square shopping mall, which was closed by police. A bomb squad, FBI hostage negotiators, and ATF agents were dispatched after reports of an improvised explosive device and the fire. Haughton's body was not found until roughly six hours after the shooting began; his death was ruled a suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Haughton, originally from Jamaica and a former U.S. Marine, had been under a restraining order and was legally barred from possessing firearms at the time of the shooting. Less than a week before the attack, he had told his father and a neighbor he would kill his wife and others "if [he] had a gun." He purchased the handgun used in the attack online the day before the shooting and bought additional ammunition locally.
The shooting prompted public reaction, including statements from the White House and then-Congressman Paul Ryan. Zina Haughton's brother, Elvin Daniel, and his wife Cheryl subsequently advocated for stricter gun laws and domestic-violence prevention measures. A candlelight vigil was held in Milwaukee on the first anniversary of the shooting in 2013.
Radcliffe Franklin Haughton is born.
Haughton warns his father and a neighbor, less than a week before the shooting, that he would kill his wife and others if he had a gun (approximate).
Haughton purchases the handgun used in the attack online and buys extra ammunition locally.
Haughton arrives at Azana Spa in Brookfield, Wisconsin, by taxi, eats at a nearby Burger King, then enters the spa at 11:09 a.m. and begins shooting.
Haughton shoots and kills Zina Haughton, Cary L. Robuck, and Maelyn M. Lind, and wounds four other women; he starts a fire and dies by suicide inside the spa.
A public candlelight vigil is held at Milwaukee City Hall on the first anniversary of the shooting.
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