Shooting Suspect Well-Known To Perry Police Department

When Perry police Chief Brian Thomas got the call Tuesday morning, it was no surprise to hear Nathan LeForce's name associated with this kind of violence. 

“We put all of our guys on high alert,” he said.

Thomas brought all his officers in and they posted outside the places they said LeForce had frequented in the past, in case he paid them a visit.

“We had the town pretty much locked up on any angle that he would come in,” Thomas told News 9.

LeForce’s mother met News 9’s Christy Lewis Tuesday afternoon at her front door in tears. She said she is praying for the fallen deputy’s family.

Back in 2000, LeForce led authorities on a chase starting in Perry, according to court records.

An affidavit stated police officers opened fire on his vehicle, after they said LeForce showed an AR-15. 

“If he did it back then, I mean, we remember that day. I do because I was here. So when we heard the news and it was him, you know our thought process was he’s not afraid to come at an officer with a gun,” Thomas said.

In 2015, a woman told police LeForce tied her up and held her against her will in Perry, but the victim apparently didn't cooperate with the courts and the case was dropped.

Then, on Tuesday, LeForce's pattern only escalated in the tragic death of Logan County deputy David Wade.

“I just can’t fathom how the sheriff and the deputy’s family is feeling. It’s just got to be hard for them,” Thomas said.