Fred Cowan

Mass Murderer

Fred Cowan’s 1977 “Valentine's Day Massacre” in New Rochelle, New York

Overview

On February 14, 1977—St. Valentine’s Day—32-year-old Frederick William “Fred” Cowan, a suspended employee and avowed white supremacist, carried out a mass shooting at the Neptune Worldwide Moving Company on Nardozzi Place in New Rochelle, New York. Arriving shortly before 8:00 a.m., Cowan opened fire on co-workers and responding police, then barricaded himself on the second floor of the warehouse. After hours of gunfire and a police siege involving hundreds of officers, Cowan died by suicide inside the building around mid-afternoon. Five people were killed and several others were wounded in one of the deadliest days in New Rochelle’s history.

Background and Motive

Cowan had been suspended from Neptune about two weeks earlier after a workplace dispute and was slated to return the morning of the attack. He was known to collect Nazi memorabilia, display swastika and iron cross tattoos, and espouse racist and antisemitic views. Witnesses and later reports described him arriving in military garb, including an Army jacket and a German-style helmet, before producing an assault rifle.

The Attack

Just before the day’s shift began, Cowan entered the warehouse and began shooting at co-workers. When New Rochelle police arrived within minutes, Cowan fired on them as well. Patrolman Allen Bruce McLeod was fatally shot while responding; additional officers and civilians were wounded in the initial bursts of rifle fire. Cowan then retreated to an upper-floor office area, where he exchanged sporadic gunfire with police through the late morning and early afternoon. At approximately 2:30 p.m., the last shot from inside was heard; when an assault team advanced, Cowan was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Contemporary reports identified his primary weapon as an M16-type rifle. ...Read More

Confirmed Victims: (5)

Joseph Hicks 60 yr old Male

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Frederick Cowan | Murderpedia

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