In a deliberate attack, a patient is accused of killing a surgeon in the operating room.
According to Collierville Police Chief Dale Lane, 29-year-old Larry Pickens reportedly waited for surgeon Dr. Benjamin Mauck at the Campbell Clinic Orthopaedics for “a number of hours.”
Pickens is charged with shooting Mauck with a firearm before escaping.
Cops were called to the area shortly after 2:00 pm on Tuesday and Pickens was taken into custody at the clinic’s entrance in Collierville, Tennessee, without further incident.
The motive was not immediately clear, but cops said Mauck was targeted.
‘It’s bad. It’s horrific. It’s terrible,’ said Lane, according to WMBF.
Police on Wednesday morning identified Pickens, of Memphis, and said he has been charged with first-degree murder and aggravated assault. A judge set his bond at $1.2million.
‘The Collierville Police Department would like to send our condolences to the family, friends, and co-workers of Dr Benjamin Mauck,’ wrote Major David Townsend. ‘Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.’
Mauck specialized in elbow, hand and wrist surgeries, according to his Campbell Clinic Orthopaedics biography. He joined the staff in August 2012 and practiced in Collierville, Germantown and Wolf River. Mauck graduated from the University of Tennessee College of Medicine.
‘Earlier today, we experienced a single shooter event inside our Collierville clinic,’ stated the clinic on Tuesday.
‘We are shocked and heartbroken to confirm the incident resulted in the tragic loss of one of our highly respected and beloved physicians, Dr Ben Mauck.’
Mauck is survived by his wife Rhiannon and their two children.
A witness claimed that the gunman had threatened a staffer at the clinic over the past week, Tennessee Senate Minority Leader Raumesh Akbari said on Tuesday.
Pickens did not have a criminal record with the Collierville Police Department, which is checking for any history he had with other law enforcement agencies.
His arraignment is scheduled for Thursday in the Collierville Town Court.
The shooting at the clinic, which is about 30 miles east of downtown Memphis, remains under investigation.