Heavily armed gunman, identified as a 43-year-old man, acted alone in Middleton shooting, police say

MIDDLETON - The gunman who shot four people at a Dane County software company Wednesday had been with the firm since April 2017 and had just purchased a new home on Madison's far west side in July. 

Authorities said Thursday that they were still working to understand what would compel 43-year-old Anthony Y. Tong to gun down co-workers at WTS Paradigm in Middleton, leaving three in serious condition at a local hospital.

Tong was killed in a shootout with police and Dane County sheriff's deputies.

"The motive has not yet been determined," Middleton Police Chief Charles Foulke said at a news conference Thursday. "Obviously that's on everyone's minds, but we just don't know yet."

Also Thursday, Foulke said the condition of the most seriously injured victim had been upgraded from critical to serious. He declined to identify the victims but described them as two men and one woman, all of whom worked at the company. All three remain hospitalized in serious condition. A fourth person was grazed by a bullet and did not require medical treatment.

He said it was not yet clear whether they had been targeted by Tong.

Police say Tong reported to work as usual Wednesday and was heavily armed — with a semiautomatic handgun and extra magazines — when he began shooting about 10:30 a.m.

Tong was identified by the Dane County Medical Examiner's Office on Thursday.

He was not licensed in Wisconsin to carry a concealed weapon, and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is attempting to trace the weapon, Foulke said. 

Police executed a search warrant late Wednesday at Tong's home in the 9700 block of Gilded Cider Boulevard, in a new subdivision under development. Foulke said they removed items that were "beneficial to the investigation," but he declined to elaborate.

Foulke said Tong lived in the home alone, and that no one else is believed to have been involved in the shooting. 

On Thursday, shards of wood littered the small front lawn of the modest, two-story home, debris created when officers forced entry to the house. A gaping hole could be seen between the front door and jamb, and a front window was broken.

Efforts to speak to neighbors were not successful Thursday.

Tong's deed for the home was recorded July 16 of this year. Prior to that, he is listed as living in an apartment on University Avenue in Madison.

Records show Tong living in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, for 17 years, and in Jacksonville, Illinois, before that. 

Four officers involved in the fatal shooting of Tong — two deputy sheriffs and two Middleton police officers — are on administrative leave, Foulke said. The state Department of Justice is the outside agency reviewing the actions of the officers, as required by state law.

Middleton Mayor Gurdip Brar and Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney also spoke at the news conference Thursday.

Brar called it a sad day for Middleton and said his "heart goes out" to the victims and their families.

RELATED:Tammy Baldwin says Middleton office shooting shows need for gun control measures

Mahoney praised the response of local law enforcement, saying he's certain that lives were saved as a result of their training and quick action.

“I can’t say enough about how law enforcement responded. We’ve seen incidents around the country where there’s been a delay or there’s been inaction. Yesterday, law enforcement in Dane County, from the City of Madison, from the City of Middleton, from Dane County Sheriff’s and all of our partners responded to this incident, and immediately their training kicked in.

"They assembled an entry team, and within minutes ended this situation. It was because of that training, it was because of the scenarios that we’ve practiced for years … saved lives. There’s no doubt about the fact that lives were saved.”  

Foulke had said Wednesday there would have been much more bloodshed if the two police officers and two deputies had not stormed in to take the suspect down.  

Tong did not have a criminal record nor did he have prior contact with Middleton police.

"He was an employee so it wasn't unusual for him to be there," Foulke said Wednesday. "He had a reason to be there, but anything else I don't know."

The call came in at 10:26 a.m. for an "active shooter" at 1850 Deming Way, where there are several businesses, including WTS Paradigm. The first officer arrived at the building three minutes later and by 10:31 a.m., six Middleton police officers were at the building along with sheriff's deputies. The regional FBI office is only a block away and FBI officers also quickly responded.

Inside the company's offices, Tong shot at police officers, who returned fire. Foulke said he didn't know how many times Tong was hit by gunfire.

At 10:34 a.m., according to audio scanner traffic provided by Broadcastify, an officer radioed to dispatch that he was "in contact" with the suspect. At 10:35 a.m., the officer radioed, "Shots fired! Shots fired!"

At 10:37 a.m., according to Broadcastify, the officer told dispatchers, "Subject is down," and called for a ballistic shield so officers could approach the suspect. 

Tong was taken to UW Hospital in an ambulance followed by two squad cars.

Employees of WTS Paradigm and employees of other businesses in and around the Paradigm building were allowed Thursday to retrieve items they left behind as they evacuated the buildings Wednesday during the shootings.

The workers also retrieved cars, which had been left in the parking lots overnight.  

Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin said Thursday the shooting shows the need for gun control measures that are “consistent with the Second Amendment.”

Baldwin, who said she is a gun owner and Second Amendment supporter, said at a news conference Thursday that she supports universal background checks and banning rapid-fire “bump stock” devices. Authorities have not indicated that such a device was used in the Middleton shooting.

Jess Ward, the campaign manager for Baldwin’s Republican opponent, Leah Vukmir, says Baldwin is “spewing do-nothing nonsense” to a serious issue. 

James B. Nelson and John Diedrich of the Journal Sentinel and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

RELATED:11 things you need to be prepared to do in an active-shooter situation