Fort Stewart Suspect Sent Foreboding Text to His Aunt — Then Shot Five Soldiers, Authorities Say By Lesley Cosme Torres

The 28-year-old soldier accused of shooting five other service members at Fort Stewart in Georgia sent a chilling text message to a relative before allegedly going on a shooting rampage.

On Wednesday morning, Quornelius Radford, an automated logistics sergeant in the Army, allegedly opened fire on his unit with his personal handgun, NBC News reported. Radford, who is originally from Jacksonville, Fla., had been assigned to the post for about three years, the outlet reported.

Investigators are still trying to determine a motive for the attack. But prior to the shooting, Radford sent a text to his aunt, his father told The New York Times. Soon, Radford wrote, he would be in a better place. 

“What we know is this soldier, the shooting occurred at the soldier’s place of work. It did involve his co-workers,” Brig. Gen. John Lubas, the Fort Stewart-Hunter Army Airfield commander, said in an interview with several outlets. “We’re still not certain about the motivations.”

The five soldiers Radford allegedly shot were hospitalized on Wednesday and in stable condition, per Lubas. They are expected to recover from their injuries. 

More people could have been wounded if it were not for an unarmed soldier who tackled Radford to the ground — and another who pinned him down — as the unit waited for police to arrive, according to the Times. 

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“These American soldiers highlight exactly what the Army has meant to this country,” Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll said during a news conference. 

Radford will be tried by the Army Office of Special Trial Counsel, CNN reported, citing military officials. They are currently investigating the shooting and are in the process of drawing up charges. Once they’ve completed that process, he’ll be brought to military court.