Middleton Workplace Shooter Had Gun Permit Revoked: Police

MIDDLETON, WI – A man accused of shooting and injuring three people inside a Middleton-based software company building Wednesday had his concealed-carry permit revoked and was not able to legally buy a gun, police said.

On Thursday afternoon, the Dane County Medical Examiner identified the shooter as Anthony Y. Tong, a 43-year-old man from Middleton. An autopsy conducted today by the medical examiner confirmed that Tong died of firearm-related trauma.

On Friday, Middleton Police Chief Chuck Foulke said that Tong had "contact" with police in South Dakota in 2004, and that as a result had his permit revoked. Foulke cautioned reporters Friday that Tong's run-in with authorities back in 2004 over a personal matter likely have little or no bearing on this week's incident.

Police searched Tong's Verona home late Wednesday night. Tong was confirmed as an employee of WTS Paradigm, and reportedly lived in the house alone. There is no word yet from authorities whether the search of Tong's home bore any fruit for the investigation.

Middleton Police Chief Chuck Foulke staged a press conference in front of the Esker Software headquarters at 1850 Deming Way in Middleton on Wednesday afternoon following the shooting. He reported that three people were injured and were being treated at area hospitals for their wounds. Foulke said three of Tong's victims suffered serious injury and the fourth suffered a minor injury when they were grazed by a bullet.

>> Stay up-to-date with with Patch! Sign up for Newsletters and E-Mail Alerts

Foulke said that Tong had a semiautomatic pistol in his possession along with extra magazines. Foulke said that he does not know the background of Tong, or his possible motive.

The Day of the Shooting

At about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, police were notified that there was an active shooter at Esker Software, 1850 Deming Way. Multiple law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, and ambulances arrived and the area was taped off from the public.

Hundreds of evacuees were sent to the Residence Inn by Marriott nearby, and all Middleton schools were put on a precautionary lock down. The Greenway Crossing shopping center was also put on lockdown, and the police perimeter gradually expanded as snipers set up positions and law enforcement agencies from around the area poured into the growing scene.

Judy Lahmers, a business analyst at WTS Paradigm, where the shooting took place, told the Associated Press she was working at her desk when it sounded "like somebody was dropping boards on the ground, really loud." Lahmers told the AP that she ran as fast as she could, and didn't look back.

At 12 p.m. Wednesday, Middleton Police informed the public that Middleton schools were safe to end their respective lock downs as the threat to their students and staff has ended.

According to a Wisconsin State Journal report, one of the witnesses of the shooting told the paper that he texted his wife “Oh my God” just after the shooting began, and hid in a room, where he heard about a dozen gunshots. Another witness told the Wisconsin State Journal that the shooter was a company employee of WTS Paradigm, a software company.

Active shooter at Deming way in Middleton #news3 pic.twitter.com/9mK6KrzcVC
— Keely Arthur (@news3keely) September" class="redactor-linkify-object">https://twitter.com/news3keely... 19, 2018

Photo Credit: A woman is escorted from the scene of a shooting at a software company in Middleton, Wis., Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2018. Four people were shot and wounded during the shooting in the suburb of Madison, according to a city administrator. (Steve Apps/Wisconsin State Journal via AP)