ANTI-ABORTION EXTREMIST AND HEAVILY ARMED FUGITIVE POSTS THREATENING MESSAGES ON WEB SITE; NOW THREATENS TO TARGET ALL ABORTION CLINIC STAFF
Fugitive Clayton Waagner, convicted felon and anti-abortion extremist who escaped from jail on February 22, has posted to an extremist Web site that he is broadening his targets of violence. He is considered heavily armed and dangerous.
Writing on anti-abortion extremist Donald Spitz’s “Army of God” Web site bulletin board, Waagner states that he is still planning to kill abortion providers. Also, he now plans to target “anyone who works at an abortion location or Planned Parenthood.” He claims to have conducted home surveillance on forty-two staff members and numerous clinics in recent weeks.
Waagner is suspected in several Pennsylvania bank robberies and has been indicted in the May 17 armed robbery of a First Union bank in Lower Paxton Township, Pennsylvania, outside Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Also, in recent weeks Waagner was allegedly seen twice outside a Harrisburg, Pennsylvania clinic with a group of anti-abortion protesters. Prior to the Pennsylvania bank robberies, Waagner was also sighted in Tennessee at a truck stop.
Before escaping, Waagner was awaiting sentencing in a Clinton, Illinois prison following a conviction on federal weapons and stolen vehicle charges. Prior to his arrest, Waagner had traveled extensively around the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic states staking out clinics and was headed to the Pacific Northwest. He told a newspaper reporter his intent was to shoot and kill abortion providers.
We urge all clinic staff members, especially in the Mid-Atlantic region, to be on high alert and use extra safety precautions. Report any violent or harassing act to law enforcement officials immediately by dialing 911. Recent photographs are available at federal law enforcement Web sites (www.atf.treas.gov, www.fbi.gov, and www.usdoj.gov/marshals).
Trained staff members at the National Clinic Access Project are available 24-hours a day to provide assistance, resources, or to answer questions via our toll-free women’s health clinic hotline: 1-877-BE-SAFE-8.
