Just days after the shooting rampage at the Kraft Foods plant, leaving two dead and another critically injured, the company is open for business. The alleged shooter, Yvonne Hiller, 43, was arraigned over the weekend and will have a preliminary hearing later this month on two counts of murder, attempted murder and other charges.
Police say Hiller had been arguing with the victims. When the argument was brought to a supervisor, and decided to suspend Hiller. After being escorted from the premises, Hiller allegedly returned with a .357 Magnum and demanded to gain entry. Police say Hiller then entered a break room and ordered one of four employees to get out. Police say she then shot the three remaining employees, killing two of them.
The two victims, LaTonya Brown, 36, and Tanya Wilson, 47, are both from Philadelphia.
Police say Hiller then went throughout the plant looking for the supervisor who suspended her. She allegedly fired a shot at him and missed.
More employees may have been lost if not for a brave mechanic in the plant. Dave Ciarlante, 41, followed the alleged shooter around the Kraft plant relaying information to authorities and other employees. Police say Hiller realized he was following her and shot at him. She missed and Ciarlante helped police find her inside the plant.
Chief Inspector Joe Sullivan, in reference to Ciarlante, says, “He was pretty cool under fire.”
SWAT officers were called in to take control of the situation. Police say SWAT officers may have been shot at. They then entered an office on the second floor and placed Hiller under arrest.
Capt. James Clark says Hiller suspected the victims were spraying chemicals on her both at work and outside of the workplace. Clark also says the altercation before the shooting was simply a “war of words…nothing really major quite honestly.”
Susan Davison, Kraft Foods director of corporate affairs, said in a statement released by the company, “We are working closely with authorities as they investigate this situation.
“To assist our employees, we will be providing counseling services,” Davison said. “We again express our deepest condolences to the families who have been touched by this tragedy.”
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