Southington Man Charged In Connecticut Capitol Shooting Incident

SOUTHINGTON/HARTFORD, CT — A 74-year-old Southington resident has been charged in relation to a shooting incident at the state Capitol in a May. The man, who lives in the Plantsville section of town, is also a defendant in a case involving a local shooting barrage that same day.

Late Tuesday morning, detectives with the Central District Major Crime Squad arrested Floyd Douglas Gollnick in relation to a shooting investigation initiated by the State Capital Police Department and the major crime squad on June 1. According to a warrant, investigators determined that, on May 30, Gollnick fired multiple gunshots into the Capitol building from the driver's seat of his vehicle, which was parked on Capital Avenue.

No injuries were reported.

The "bullet strikes" were not discovered until June 1, according to a warrant.

Gollnick has been a suspect in the Capitol incident since his arrest in Southington on June 1 in connection with a shooting spree in that town and Bristol, cases for which is is currently being held on $751,000 in bonds.

Gollnick was charged Tuesday by state police with the unlawful discharge of a firearm, first-degree reckless endangerment and first-degree criminal mischief. He was to appear in Hartford Superior Court Tuesday.

Gollnick is also accused of shooting up a church, a business and several homes in Southington, also on May 30.

For an incident at 376 North Star Drive, Gollnick has been charged with criminal attempt at first-degree assault, unlawful discharge of a firearm, first-degree reckless endangerment, criminal use of a firearm and first-degree criminal mischief.

For an incident at 70 Meriden Ave., Gollnick has been be charged with unlawful discharge of a firearm, first-degree reckless endangerment, criminal use of a firearm, first-degree criminal mischief, interfering with police and engaging police in a pursuit.

Southington police said Gollnick had no known criminal history prior to the incident, police said. He had only had two police contacts before the gun incidents — welfare checks in December — police said.

The wild sequence in Southington involving Gollnick began to unravel on May 30 at 6:43 p.m., when Southington police received a call from a citizen at 2344 Meriden-Waterbury Road, reporting 16 shots fired at the residence, according to an incident report.

At 7:13 p.m., police received a call from a resident at 376 North Star Drive reporting four-to-five shots fired at the property, according to an incident report.

At at 7:39 pm, police received an alarm call from Hartford HealthCare Group at 70 Meriden Ave. reporting a "glass break," according to an incident report.

Shots fired at a fourth location, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints campus at 750 Meriden- Waterbury Turnpike, were reported at 8:54 p.m., by a church member, and police said the incident had taken place earlier in the day.

As officers arrived at Hartford HealthCare to investigate the alarm, they discovered a black Chevrolet Silverado parked behind the office and saw a man wearing a yellow T-shirt and blue jeans, matching the description of a suspect in an earlier shooting incident in Bristol, according a news release. Officers then saw the man, standing outside the vehicle with the passenger side door open, holding what they called a "long rifle," according to a news release.

As officers attempted to establish a perimeter around the building, shots were heard from the suspect's location, behind the building, according to a news release.

Officers then saw the man drive the black Silverado around the building and onto Meriden Avenue, according to a news release.

From there, a pursuit spilled south onto Old Turnpike Road and continued south on Interstate-691, police said. Southington, Meriden and Middletown police, along with state police, pursued the suspect vehicle into Middletown and onto Route 66, where Middletown police were able to deploy stop sticks, according to a news release. The Silverado eventually came to a stop on the Arrigoni Bridge, police said.

While taking Gollnick into custody, officers seized a .22-cal "long rifle" from the front passenger seat, according to a news release.

In Southington, the homes at 2344 Meriden-Waterbury Turnpike and 376 North Star Drive were occupied at the time of the shootings, but no injuries were reported, police said.

Gollnick was sent to an area hospital, police said. Gollnick had some association with every property, police said.

Records show other Southington properties affected were 156 School St., 216 Flanders Road and 828 Meriden Waterbury Turnpike.

According to an incident report, at approximately 6:30 p.m. Sunday, a resident at 156 School St reported hearing a noise outside the residence. The resident was unable to identify the noise but then received a call from a church member, and, after checking further, the resident discovered several bullet holes in a wall and into a second floor bedroom. Investigators determined approximately 12-to-15 shots were fired into a second floor bedroom wall. The home was occupied at the time and no one in the home was injured.

Between 6:30 and 7 p.m., a resident at 216 Flanders Road reported hearing a noise outside the home, police said. The resident then noticed a lone man sitting in a black truck in the road in front of the home, but did not immediately identify him as Gollnick and thought it was a delivery driver. In all, 16 shots were fired into the home's garage door, police said.

At 8:28 pm., on Meriden Waterbury Turnpike, at Polumbo’s Service Center, investigators discovered 12 bullet holes from shots fired into overhead doors at the business, police said.