The Legend of The Killdozer

June 4th marked the anniversary of one of the wildest stories of civil disobedience in the history of America. On that day a man burst through the walls of his muffler repair shop in a homemade bulldozer-tank and proceeded to tear down the homes and businesses of everyone in the local city-government that he felt had wronged him. This is his story..

Marvin Heemeyer of Granby, Colorado was a profoundly frustrated muffler repair man. In the late 1990s—after years of protests, petitions, and town meetings—it became obvious to the 52-year-old that he was entwined in a gross miscarriage of justice. His business was ruined by some shady zoning changes, and Heemeyer contended that mayor and city council were corrupt. Even as he was forced to give up his legal fight and sell his land, he hatched one last plan to secretly retool his muffler shop to serve a single malevolent purpose: to construct a machine that would allow him to exact his revenge upon those who had wronged him.

From what I can make out, some people offered to buy his muffler shop. He wouldn't sell, so they used their contacts in the city-government to get the area his shop was in rezoned. And because of that, he was going to be forced to sell. If that's how it really happened, I can understand why he felt the way he did.

Hindered but not yet defeated, Heemeyer set out to remedy the situation using community action, legal maneuvering, and elbow grease. He appealed the zoning commission’s decision, and gathered signatures from the townsfolk to petition against the plant. He attempted to obtain permission to install a sewer line under eight feet of land owned by Mountain Park Concrete, but the new owners refused. He even went so far as to buy a bulldozer to build a new road that would allow customer access to his muffler shop, but the city council declined to approve his plan. Many people suspected there were some shady dealings between the concrete plant and the members of the city council, but no actual evidence of such illegal goings-on has ever been found. Having no recourse, Heemeyer sent the city a $2,500 check to cover the fines, with the word “cowards” written ominously on the memo line. He then sold the muffler shop property to a trash company, and was given six months to vacate.

The story of what really happened to him and his business is different depending on who's telling it, but I'll say his side of it doesn't sound far fetched. After trying all he could legal-wise, he decided on a different plan of action. Which was over a year in the making..

Heemeyer set to work on his new project almost immediately. The Komatsu D335A bulldozer that was meant to save his business was instead moved into the muffler shop, and Heemeyer began to make some modifications. He started by adding home-made composite armor—cement sandwiched between thick sheets of steel—to protect the cab, engine, and parts of the tracks. He installed front and rear cameras to feed images to monitors in the cab, and several gun ports were set around the control center. A stockpile of food and water was stored inside, as well as an air tank to help provide air circulation.

At just after 3:00 PM, the makeshift tank tore through the side of his shed, and smashed into the Mountain Park Concrete plant. Shortly thereafter, the phones at the 911 response center began ringing incessantly. A man named Cody Docheff witnessed the destruction-in-progress and attempted to use a front-end loader to intercept the rampaging bulldozer, but withdrew when he was fired upon from the gun ports of this “Killdozer.”

Within minutes two buildings and multiple vehicles were eviscerated, and the Killdozer rumbled towards the highway into town. The slow-moving bulldozer picked up a parade of emergency vehicle escorts as it approached the city limits. One police SUV was crushed when it strayed too near. Undersheriff Glen Trainor managed to climb atop the moving bulldozer, and used 37 rounds from his service pistol to try and shoot his way in. “I think the thing that drove me,” he later reported, “is that I knew that killing him behind the wheel was the only way we were going to be able to stop this thing.”

When Heemeyer and his Killdozer arrived in town, the Granby police were waiting for him. Against the armored behemoth, however, the lawmen were powerless. When it became clear that the armor was impervious to bullets the police tried explosives, but they too were without effect. Lawmen kept to the sides and tried to vacate anyone from the Killdozer’s path, and the local police utilized the reverse 911 system to call residents and warn them of the approaching danger. News helicopters filmed the unfolding violence from above.

In about an hour of mayhem, the bulldozer had demolished thirteen structures and was en route to its next target: Gamble’s Hardware. The damage from small arms and the extra weight of the armor were taking a toll on the vehicle, however. The radiator had sprung a leak, and the Killdozer was losing horsepower. As the fatigued machine crashed through the wall of the hardware store the floor beneath the beast broke, and the front end of the bulldozer fell into a shallow basement. The engine struggled, but it could not power itself out of the pit.

And this is where the story ends. It seems Marvin Heemeyer hadn't planned on making it out alive. Police reported hearing a single, muffled shot from the inside of the Killdozer. And that was it. When police tried to open the cab, even explosives weren't enough to get through the Killdozers armor.

Explosives were employed to try to open the tank, but in the end it took twelve hours with an oxyacetylene torch and a crane to crack the armored top. Inside Heemeyer was found dead, having shot himself with a .357 handgun. He was the lone casualty of the destruction spree.

Link

News helicopter video of the Killdozer-


And something even those of you who are familiar with this incident probably haven't heard, the original tapes that Marvin Heemeyer recorded telling his side of the story. It's almost 3 hours long, and I haven't had a chance to listen to it all yet. If anyone does I'd be interested in knowing the details in his own words.


It's amazing that during this rampage the only person killed was Heemeyer himself. To me this is the story of a man who got sick of being screwed over by city hall and decided to tear it down. Along with the mayors house and the businesses of people who conspired against him.

Some people call him a hero. I don't know if I'd go that far, but it sure is an interesting story.

I think this is a feeling a lot of us are going through at this point, there might be a lot more of these in the future as our government get's more corrupt and tyrannical

Reminds me of the game Twisted Metal.

originally posted by: underwerks
June 4th marked the anniversary of one of the wildest stories of civil disobedience in the history of America. On that day a man burst through the walls of his muffler repair shop in a homemade bulldozer-tank and proceeded to tear down the homes and businesses of everyone in the local city-government that he felt had wronged him. This is his story..

Marvin Heemeyer of Granby, Colorado was a profoundly frustrated muffler repair man. In the late 1990s—after years of protests, petitions, and town meetings—it became obvious to the 52-year-old that he was entwined in a gross miscarriage of justice. His business was ruined by some shady zoning changes, and Heemeyer contended that mayor and city council were corrupt. Even as he was forced to give up his legal fight and sell his land, he hatched one last plan to secretly retool his muffler shop to serve a single malevolent purpose: to construct a machine that would allow him to exact his revenge upon those who had wronged him.

From what I can make out, some people offered to buy his muffler shop. He wouldn't sell, so they used their contacts in the city-government to get the area his shop was in rezoned. And because of that, he was going to be forced to sell. If that's how it really happened, I can understand why he felt the way he did.

Hindered but not yet defeated, Heemeyer set out to remedy the situation using community action, legal maneuvering, and elbow grease. He appealed the zoning commission’s decision, and gathered signatures from the townsfolk to petition against the plant. He attempted to obtain permission to install a sewer line under eight feet of land owned by Mountain Park Concrete, but the new owners refused. He even went so far as to buy a bulldozer to build a new road that would allow customer access to his muffler shop, but the city council declined to approve his plan. Many people suspected there were some shady dealings between the concrete plant and the members of the city council, but no actual evidence of such illegal goings-on has ever been found. Having no recourse, Heemeyer sent the city a $2,500 check to cover the fines, with the word “cowards” written ominously on the memo line. He then sold the muffler shop property to a trash company, and was given six months to vacate.

The story of what really happened to him and his business is different depending on who's telling it, but I'll say his side of it doesn't sound far fetched. After trying all he could legal-wise, he decided on a different plan of action. Which was over a year in the making..

Heemeyer set to work on his new project almost immediately. The Komatsu D335A bulldozer that was meant to save his business was instead moved into the muffler shop, and Heemeyer began to make some modifications. He started by adding home-made composite armor—cement sandwiched between thick sheets of steel—to protect the cab, engine, and parts of the tracks. He installed front and rear cameras to feed images to monitors in the cab, and several gun ports were set around the control center. A stockpile of food and water was stored inside, as well as an air tank to help provide air circulation.

At just after 3:00 PM, the makeshift tank tore through the side of his shed, and smashed into the Mountain Park Concrete plant. Shortly thereafter, the phones at the 911 response center began ringing incessantly. A man named Cody Docheff witnessed the destruction-in-progress and attempted to use a front-end loader to intercept the rampaging bulldozer, but withdrew when he was fired upon from the gun ports of this “Killdozer.”

Within minutes two buildings and multiple vehicles were eviscerated, and the Killdozer rumbled towards the highway into town. The slow-moving bulldozer picked up a parade of emergency vehicle escorts as it approached the city limits. One police SUV was crushed when it strayed too near. Undersheriff Glen Trainor managed to climb atop the moving bulldozer, and used 37 rounds from his service pistol to try and shoot his way in. “I think the thing that drove me,” he later reported, “is that I knew that killing him behind the wheel was the only way we were going to be able to stop this thing.”

When Heemeyer and his Killdozer arrived in town, the Granby police were waiting for him. Against the armored behemoth, however, the lawmen were powerless. When it became clear that the armor was impervious to bullets the police tried explosives, but they too were without effect. Lawmen kept to the sides and tried to vacate anyone from the Killdozer’s path, and the local police utilized the reverse 911 system to call residents and warn them of the approaching danger. News helicopters filmed the unfolding violence from above.

In about an hour of mayhem, the bulldozer had demolished thirteen structures and was en route to its next target: Gamble’s Hardware. The damage from small arms and the extra weight of the armor were taking a toll on the vehicle, however. The radiator had sprung a leak, and the Killdozer was losing horsepower. As the fatigued machine crashed through the wall of the hardware store the floor beneath the beast broke, and the front end of the bulldozer fell into a shallow basement. The engine struggled, but it could not power itself out of the pit.

And this is where the story ends. It seems Marvin Heemeyer hadn't planned on making it out alive. Police reported hearing a single, muffled shot from the inside of the Killdozer. And that was it. When police tried to open the cab, even explosives weren't enough to get through the Killdozers armor.

Explosives were employed to try to open the tank, but in the end it took twelve hours with an oxyacetylene torch and a crane to crack the armored top. Inside Heemeyer was found dead, having shot himself with a .357 handgun. He was the lone casualty of the destruction spree.

Link

News helicopter video of the Killdozer-

And something even those of you who are familiar with this incident probably haven't heard, the original tapes that Marvin Heemeyer recorded telling his side of the story. It's almost 3 hours long, and I haven't had a chance to listen to it all yet. If anyone does I'd be interested in knowing the details in his own words.

It's amazing that during this rampage the only person killed was Heemeyer himself. To me this is the story of a man who got sick of being screwed over by city hall and decided to tear it down. Along with the mayors house and the businesses of people who conspired against him.

Some people call him a hero. I don't know if I'd go that far, but it sure is an interesting story.

I remember when that happened.

This guy is a hero only because he did something unique. If he'd have gone on a shooting rampage no one would be praising him.

That was the goal of all those cameras. Not to hurt anyone. Just to cost them more money than it would have to have given him a fair deal for his land. What it was worth to the cement factory was far more than what they offered him. He wanted enough money to relocate and compensate him for the loss of all his established customers.

a reply to: RowanBean

Ahhh, me and my kids used to love playing twisted metal.

This guy is a hero.

He didn’t kill anyone, but I think those corrupt a-holes got the point.

originally posted by: Edumakated

originally posted by: underwerks
June 4th marked the anniversary of one of the wildest stories of civil disobedience in the history of America. On that day a man burst through the walls of his muffler repair shop in a homemade bulldozer-tank and proceeded to tear down the homes and businesses of everyone in the local city-government that he felt had wronged him. This is his story..

Marvin Heemeyer of Granby, Colorado was a profoundly frustrated muffler repair man. In the late 1990s—after years of protests, petitions, and town meetings—it became obvious to the 52-year-old that he was entwined in a gross miscarriage of justice. His business was ruined by some shady zoning changes, and Heemeyer contended that mayor and city council were corrupt. Even as he was forced to give up his legal fight and sell his land, he hatched one last plan to secretly retool his muffler shop to serve a single malevolent purpose: to construct a machine that would allow him to exact his revenge upon those who had wronged him.

From what I can make out, some people offered to buy his muffler shop. He wouldn't sell, so they used their contacts in the city-government to get the area his shop was in rezoned. And because of that, he was going to be forced to sell. If that's how it really happened, I can understand why he felt the way he did.

Hindered but not yet defeated, Heemeyer set out to remedy the situation using community action, legal maneuvering, and elbow grease. He appealed the zoning commission’s decision, and gathered signatures from the townsfolk to petition against the plant. He attempted to obtain permission to install a sewer line under eight feet of land owned by Mountain Park Concrete, but the new owners refused. He even went so far as to buy a bulldozer to build a new road that would allow customer access to his muffler shop, but the city council declined to approve his plan. Many people suspected there were some shady dealings between the concrete plant and the members of the city council, but no actual evidence of such illegal goings-on has ever been found. Having no recourse, Heemeyer sent the city a $2,500 check to cover the fines, with the word “cowards” written ominously on the memo line. He then sold the muffler shop property to a trash company, and was given six months to vacate.

The story of what really happened to him and his business is different depending on who's telling it, but I'll say his side of it doesn't sound far fetched. After trying all he could legal-wise, he decided on a different plan of action. Which was over a year in the making..

Heemeyer set to work on his new project almost immediately. The Komatsu D335A bulldozer that was meant to save his business was instead moved into the muffler shop, and Heemeyer began to make some modifications. He started by adding home-made composite armor—cement sandwiched between thick sheets of steel—to protect the cab, engine, and parts of the tracks. He installed front and rear cameras to feed images to monitors in the cab, and several gun ports were set around the control center. A stockpile of food and water was stored inside, as well as an air tank to help provide air circulation.

At just after 3:00 PM, the makeshift tank tore through the side of his shed, and smashed into the Mountain Park Concrete plant. Shortly thereafter, the phones at the 911 response center began ringing incessantly. A man named Cody Docheff witnessed the destruction-in-progress and attempted to use a front-end loader to intercept the rampaging bulldozer, but withdrew when he was fired upon from the gun ports of this “Killdozer.”

Within minutes two buildings and multiple vehicles were eviscerated, and the Killdozer rumbled towards the highway into town. The slow-moving bulldozer picked up a parade of emergency vehicle escorts as it approached the city limits. One police SUV was crushed when it strayed too near. Undersheriff Glen Trainor managed to climb atop the moving bulldozer, and used 37 rounds from his service pistol to try and shoot his way in. “I think the thing that drove me,” he later reported, “is that I knew that killing him behind the wheel was the only way we were going to be able to stop this thing.”

When Heemeyer and his Killdozer arrived in town, the Granby police were waiting for him. Against the armored behemoth, however, the lawmen were powerless. When it became clear that the armor was impervious to bullets the police tried explosives, but they too were without effect. Lawmen kept to the sides and tried to vacate anyone from the Killdozer’s path, and the local police utilized the reverse 911 system to call residents and warn them of the approaching danger. News helicopters filmed the unfolding violence from above.

In about an hour of mayhem, the bulldozer had demolished thirteen structures and was en route to its next target: Gamble’s Hardware. The damage from small arms and the extra weight of the armor were taking a toll on the vehicle, however. The radiator had sprung a leak, and the Killdozer was losing horsepower. As the fatigued machine crashed through the wall of the hardware store the floor beneath the beast broke, and the front end of the bulldozer fell into a shallow basement. The engine struggled, but it could not power itself out of the pit.

And this is where the story ends. It seems Marvin Heemeyer hadn't planned on making it out alive. Police reported hearing a single, muffled shot from the inside of the Killdozer. And that was it. When police tried to open the cab, even explosives weren't enough to get through the Killdozers armor.

Explosives were employed to try to open the tank, but in the end it took twelve hours with an oxyacetylene torch and a crane to crack the armored top. Inside Heemeyer was found dead, having shot himself with a .357 handgun. He was the lone casualty of the destruction spree.

Link

News helicopter video of the Killdozer-

And something even those of you who are familiar with this incident probably haven't heard, the original tapes that Marvin Heemeyer recorded telling his side of the story. It's almost 3 hours long, and I haven't had a chance to listen to it all yet. If anyone does I'd be interested in knowing the details in his own words.

It's amazing that during this rampage the only person killed was Heemeyer himself. To me this is the story of a man who got sick of being screwed over by city hall and decided to tear it down. Along with the mayors house and the businesses of people who conspired against him.

Some people call him a hero. I don't know if I'd go that far, but it sure is an interesting story.

I remember when that happened.

This guy is a hero only because he did something unique. If he'd have gone on a shooting rampage no one would be praising him.

Yeah. A hero.

Any number of innocents could have died. Any one of the businesses flattened could have had children visiting working parents. The man shot at near the beginning of the carnage was only doing his job.

This man was most likely wronged and deserved better. Was this the way to do it? No freaking way.

a reply to: underwerks

As crazy as it is, I have to admire his tenacity, and his can do, eff you attitude. Also, he didn't kill anyone, besides himself. He could have went on a bloody rampage.

Four years after the event, I drove through Granby and many businesses still had not repaired the damage. There were lots of particle board walls covering the damage.

originally posted by: darkwingduck
a reply to: underwerks

As crazy as it is, I have to admire his tenacity, and his can do, eff you attitude. Also, he didn't kill anyone, besides himself. He could have went on a bloody rampage.

The innocent civilian, Cody who tried to stop him was shot at multiple times. Not one of the people who wronged this man if his story is to be believed. An innocent man who tried to prevent this senseless destruction and potential loss of life.

You admire a unhinged lunatic who shoots at civilians and then commits suicide rather than dealing with his problems as an adult? Huh.

a reply to: underwerks

I feel for him and somehow I honestly don't think he ever intended to kill anyone else, just wreck there homes and business as they had his.

The law failed him, the system's corruption conspired to rob him of the business he a respectable hard working business man had built up, he was being muscled by those around him and the local government was being used as an enforcer against him.

In his defense had he wanted to simply kill he would have gotten an assault rifle, the shot's he fired from the gun hole were probably just warning shot's and most others in that situation would simply have taken revenge, perhaps slowly and meticulously so that the people whom had wronged them would simply have been shot from a safe vantage point with a long range hunting rifle which itself would then have been disposed off out of state.

This was an honest, hard working man not a killer whom had simply been pushed beyond his - and most people's - breaking point.

I can not fault the police and for a home made tank he created quite a beast, God know's what he could have done with one of the many actual tank's which people own in the state's but I still doubt he would have used it to kill anyone and just to make them feel what he felt.

May God rest his soul and comfort his family helping them to eventually forgive him for making such a foolish action.

a reply to: nightbringr

It's not about admiring so much as understanding, he was pushed too far and yes if he did shoot to kill but I doubt he did.

Just think, with the right anti-bulldozer legislation none of this would have ever happened.

originally posted by: Elton
Four years after the event, I drove through Granby and many businesses still had not repaired the damage. There were lots of particle board walls covering the damage.

So you witnessed firsthand the destruction this selfish idiot caused to honest business owners?

Reading though this post kind of makes me sick. People jumping to this guys defense when he tried to ruin others lives and kill people. Why else mount multiple guns on the damn thing?

Freaking immature. Just because of the 'cool Mad Max factor of it all, you people hail him as a hero. Grow the F up.

originally posted by: LABTECH767
a reply to: nightbringr

It's not about admiring so much as understanding, he was pushed too far and yes if he did shoot to kill but I doubt he did.

Pushed far enough to mount weapons on a bulldozer and shoot at an innocent man trying to stop him?

That's not being a vigilante, that's being a criminal with no concern of others. How the hell do we know his story is true, anyways? Someone deranged enough to do this probably made many mistakes up until his breaking point.

I respect him.

a reply to: nightbringr

The man was NOT shot, shot's were fired and he backed off there is a difference, now if we can actually see evidence that the WAS shot or shot at then that is a different matter and would simply prove he had lost all reason.
I have suffered injustice from corruption in authority and my Mother suffered it to her last day so I can most certainly sympathize with the man.

As for innocent business, read it again they had forced him down and tried to muscle him out when he had been there for years, forcing him off his own land with probably back door deal's and pay off's from those wanting his business space for there own expansion and deliberate malicious re-zoning forcing his business into the ground.

So I put it to YOU that he was the innocent business man, the hard working honest Joe and NOT them until the point were there actions made him snap.

Another way of putting it is that they were like a big ranch owner claim jumping a small holder.

originally posted by: darkwingduck
a reply to: underwerks

As crazy as it is, I have to admire his tenacity, and his can do, eff you attitude. Also, he didn't kill anyone, besides himself. He could have went on a bloody rampage.

I had just heard about this recently. And yeah, it could have went completely different if he had wanted it to. He basically had a tank.

I find it telling that the police broke up the bulldozer into small parts and sent them to different junk yards to keep people from taking souvenirs. No martyrs here.

originally posted by: LABTECH767
a reply to: nightbringr

The man was NOT shot, shot's were fired and he backed off there is a difference, now if we can actually see evidence that the WAS shot or shot at then that is a different matter and would simply prove he had lost all reason.
I have suffered injustice from corruption in authority and my Mother suffered it to her last day so I can most certainly sympathize with the man.

As for innocent business, read it again they had forced him down and tried to muscle him out when he had been there for years, forcing him off his own land with probably back door deal's and pay off's from those wanting his business space for there own expansion and deliberate malicious re-zoning forcing his business into the ground.

So I put it to YOU that he was the innocent business man, the hard working honest Joe and NOT them until the point were there actions made him snap.

But that is just his story.

Why on earth would we believe that? If they were his neighbors and they had a relationship, what on earth would they have to gain from having him ousted? I would imagine if he was a respected business owner and neighbor, they would do anything to keep him there. I would.

Sounds like a deranged psychopath. Only an idiot would commit suicide in such a manner. So many better ways to go about fighting injustice other than risking others lives and committing suicide.