An Oklahoma man accused of threatening to shoot Muslims following the Paris terrorist attacks, and later pointing a loaded gun at officers, told police he did it so his family could collect his life insurance, court records show.

Mark James Riedel, 47, of Norman, Oklahoma told a dispatcher during a 911 call Nov. 15 he was dealing with severe mental illness. He later told police he had been drinking that day.

Norman police responded to Riedel’s residence after threatening to shoot Muslims and cars, according to 911 calls.

During the first 911 call, Riedel could be heard telling the dispatcher he was dealing with mental illness and he was “gonna go out there and just start shootin’ anything that looks like a Muslim after what they did to France.”

He then hung up and called again about 15 minutes later. In between calls, police were attempting to set up a perimeter to isolate the residence, the affidavit states.

During the second call, Riedel could be heard telling the dispatcher he was being ignored, so he was just going to start shooting at cars. He then hung up again.

As the incident unfolded, there was traffic passing by to the west of Riedel’s residence. Since Riedel had a loaded handgun and had just made a threat to shoot at cars, he posed an immediate threat to passing motorists. He was prevented from shooting at vehicles due to police intervention, Det. Phil Taylor wrote in the affidavit.

When Riedel hung up after the second 911 call, he walked out of his home with a loaded handgun.

“Mark Riedel ignored numerous commands to drop his gun and eventually raised his gun, pointing it in the direction of three Norman police officers,” Taylor wrote.

After two police officers shot Riedel, he was taken into custody and transported to the hospital to receive emergency medical treatment. Taylor interviewed Riedel the next day.

Riedel told Taylor he had three or four “rum and Cokes” prior to the incident and admitted that he felt like he was under the influence of alcohol. Riedel also admitted to pointing his gun in the direction of officers, the affidavit states.

“Mark Riedel stated he was trying to get the officers to shoot and kill him so that his wife and son could collect on his life insurance payout,” Taylor wrote in the affidavit.

Riedel was charged Monday with three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, one count of planning, attempting or conspiring to perform an act of violence and a misdemeanor count of carrying a firearm while under the influence.

A warrant of arrest was issued Monday for Riedel. His bond amount was set at $50,000. 

As of Tuesday, Riedel had not yet been booked into jail at the Cleveland County Detention Center. 

Norman officers Lt. Clay Bolin and Officer Edward Nickerson were involved in the incident. Bolin has served with NPD since August 1992 and Nickerson since September 2014. The department placed both officers on routine administrative leave, pending the outcome of the investigation. 

Bruha writes for The Norman (Okla.) Transcript