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The following are the facts surrounding the sniper shootings in the Washington, D.C., area:
- 5:20 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 2: Windows shot at Maryland craft store. No one hurt.
- 6:04 p.m. Wednesday: James D. Martin, 55, of Silver Spring, Md., killed in Maryland grocery store parking lot.
- 7:41 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 3: James L. "Sonny" Buchanan, 39, of Arlington, Va., killed while cutting grass at Maryland auto dealership.
- 8:12 a.m. Thursday: Taxi driver Prem Kumar Walekar, 54, of Olney, Md., killed at Maryland gas station.
- 8:37 a.m. Thursday: Sarah Ramos, 34, of Silver Spring, Md., killed outside Maryland post office.
- 9:58 a.m. Thursday: Lori Ann Lewis-Rivera, 25, of Silver Spring, Md., killed as she vacuumed her van at Maryland gas station.
- 9:15 p.m. Thursday: Pascal Charlot, 72, of Washington, D.C, killed while standing on a street in the nation's capital.
- 2:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 4: 43-year-old woman wounded in craft-store parking lot in Fredericksburg, Va.
- 8:09 a.m. Monday, Oct. 7: 13-year-old boy wounded as he is dropped off at Bowie, Md., school.
- 8:15 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 9: Dean Harold Meyers, 53, of Gaithersburg, Md., shot dead at a gas station near Manassas, Va., about 30 miles west of Washington, D.C.
- 9:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 11: Kenneth H. Bridges, 53, shot while pumping gas at Exxon gas station in Massaponax, Va., just south of Fredericksburg on his way back from a business meeting.
- 9:15 p.m. Monday, Oct. 14: Linda Franklin, 47, of Arlington, Va., was shot in the head and killed as she and her husband loaded packages into their car outside a Home Depot store in Falls Church, Va. (Fairfax County).
- Shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 19: A man, 37, was shot in the stomach and critically wounded while leaving a Ponderosa steakhouse with his wife in Ashland, Va.
- 6 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 22: Conrad Johnson, a 35-year-old bus driver, was fatally wounded on a commuter bus in the Aspen Hill area of Montgomery County, Md. Ballistics evidence confirmed on Wednesday that it was the work of the sniper.
- 3:19 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 24: Police arrest John Allen Muhammed, 41, and John Lee Malvo, 17, while they're sleeping in their car at a rest stop in Frederick County, Md.
- Boy, 13, in critical but stable condition at Children's Hospital, Washington, D.C.
- Woman, 43, was released from Inova Fairfax Hospital, Fairfax, Va.
- Man, 37, in critical condition at Medical College of Virginia Hospital in Richmond, Va.
- James "Sonny" Buchanan: Independent landscaper who usually took care of the grounds at an auto dealership on Saturdays. This time, he was mowing the lawn on Thursday when he was shot to death. The auto dealer says Buchanan, 39, was an amateur poet and volunteer who worked with underprivileged children through local Boys and Girls clubs. Buchanan lived in Arlington, Va., and also volunteered with a crime-solvers hot line.
- James Martin: Father of an 11-year-old boy, and leader of his Boy Scout troop. Martin, 55, was in the parking lot of a grocery store when he was fatally shot. Martin worked as a program analyst for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. A resident of Silver Spring, Md., Martin was a Vietnam veteran, a Civil War buff and an amateur genealogist. He volunteered at a Washington elementary school, where he judged the science fair and arranged for a donation of computers, which he delivered himself. Friends remembered him as a lover of red wine who wore funny ties to church.
- Prem Kumar Walekar: A part-time cab driver who lived in Olney, Md., he started his day early on Thursday so he could enjoy the nice weather later on. He was shot and killed while pumping gas into his taxi. Walekar, 54, was born in Bombay, and came to the U.S. at the age of 18 to go to college. His marriage was arranged by his brother - who says the bride and groom didn't meet until a couple of days before the wedding. But he says, "After the marriage, there was love." He was getting ready to spend his retirement in India. Relatives said he worked hard, sent money to his father in India and helped bring his siblings to America. He was a quiet man with a good sense of humor, they said.
- Lori Ann Lewis-Rivera: A neighbor says she was a "very nice and sweet lady" who doted on her preschool-aged daughter and "provided everything for her." Lewis-Rivera, a 25-year-old resident of Silver Spring, Md., was killed while cleaning her van at a Shell station. She had moved into a garden apartment about a year ago with her daughter and husband, but dreamed of moving to a house. Originally from Mountain Home, Idaho, Lewis-Rivera decided in junior high school that she wanted to become a nanny. After high school, she went to a nanny school in Oregon. Her father, Marion Lewis, said she was "special to everybody she met and she brought friendship and love."
- Sarah Ramos: The 34-year-old Silver Spring, Md., resident had gotten off a bus at a shopping center in a retirement community. She sat down on a bench to read, and was shot in the head. Friends described Ramos, a native of El Salvador who worked as a babysitter, as a hardworking immigrant who dreamed of building a prosperous life. Ramos was remembered as a cheerful, fun-loving wife and a doting mother of a 7-year-old son. She belonged to several church groups.
- Dean Harold Meyers: The 53-year-old civil engineer from Gaithersburg, Md., was gunned down at a Sunoco gas station in Manassas, Va., moments after filling his tank. Meyers was a project manager in the Manassas office of Dewberry & Davis, an engineering and architectural firm. Friends and co-workers said he was hardworking and thoughtful - someone who would help carry heavy packages and feed stray cats.
- Pascal Charlot: The 72-year-old from Washington, D.C., was a carpenter who immigrated from Haiti years ago. He fixed things for his neighbors - a doorjamb for one, a box around a radiator for another. He lived with his wife in a rowhouse decorated with potted flowers on the porch and tomatoes and bell peppers in a small garden.
- Kenneth H. Bridges: The 53-year-old father of six from Philadelphia had co-founded a marketing and distribution organization and was a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania. Bridges was president and chairman of the board of MATAH Network, an organization formed in 1997 to encourage blacks to support black-owned businesses and to promote black self-sufficiency. He is described by neighbors as "very friendly, very friendly." Bridges' wife was concerned because he was going to the Washington area for a business trip.
- Linda Franklin: The 47-year old Arlington, Va., resident had beaten breast cancer, raised two children and a niece practically by herself and was expecting her first grandchild in just a few months. An intelligence specialist with the FBI, Franklin’s smile "could light up a room," coworkers said. "Extremely outgoing," Paul Hulseberg said of his friend. "Probably the most giving person I know." Franklin is survived by her husband and two grown children, a son and daughter. The daughter is five months pregnant.
- Conrad Johnson: The 35-year old Oxon Hill, Md., resident was a 10-year Montgomery County, Md., employee. A neighbor described the former bus driver as a "joker who liked having a clean car and loved being outside with his sons." Friends said Johnson was a fervent football fan, weightlifter and "real family man. He loved his boys." Johnson is survived by his wife, Denise, and two sons.
- The five fatal Maryland shootings took place in Montgomery County, just north of Washington, D.C. The shootings were within five miles of each other.
- The shooting in Washington, D.C., took place near the city's border with Montgomery County.
- The Fredericksburg, Va., shooting took place about 55 miles south of the Montgomery County attacks.
- The shooting in Bowie, Md., was 20 miles east of the Montgomery County attacks.
- The shooting in Manassas, Va., was 40 miles southwest of the Bowie, Md., shooting scene and 30 miles west of Washington, D.C.
- The shooting in Massaponox, Va., occurred just south of Fredericksburg, about 50 miles away from the Manassas attack.
- The Falls Church, Va., shooting occurred about 10 miles west of Washington, D.C.
- The Ashland, Va., shooting took place 85 miles south of Washington, D.C. It is the farthest the sniper has traveled from the D.C. area for an attack.
- The Oct. 22 Aspen Hill, Md., shooting is just a half mile from some of the original Montgomery County shootings.
- The Oct. 24 early morning arrest of John Allen Muhammad, 41, and John Lee Malvo, 17, took place at a rest stop off I-70 in Frederick County, Md., northwest of Washington, D.C.
- According to former FBI profilers, he's probably a white man in his 20s or early 30s who lives nearby - and who has a score to settle.
- Former FBI profiler Robert Ressler says he's a "spree killer" as opposed to a mass murderer. Ressler says serial killers of this type can go through "emotional cooling-off periods" that could span days or even months.
- Former FBI profiler Clinton Van Zandt says the killer "isn't somebody who just snapped." He says he's a "cold" and "calculating" individual who enjoys "playing God" and "sticking [his] finger in the face of the authorities and society."
- In each of the fatal shootings, a single shot was fired from a high-powered gun at a considerable distance.
- Experts say the killer, or killers, appear to be thrill-seekers who revel in the fear they've created and the attention the crimes are receiving.
- The Bush administration is considering the possibility that foreign or domestic terrorists are behind the sniper slayings.
- Police reveal letter from sniper found at Ashland, Va., shooting included the warning, "Your children are not safe, anywhere, at any time."
- Police continue to reach out publicly to gunman, urging him to contact them again.
- The bullets that were used in the shootings are .223-caliber high-velocity rounds that are common military ammunition. They are also a favorite of recreational shooters, and can be used in many types of guns.
- Police in Montgomery County had said earlier that they were looking for both a driver and a shooter. A witness had seen two men leaving one of the shooting scenes in a white box truck, and police say they're still looking for that truck. But profilers say the shooter would probably have dumped the vehicle by now.
- Police are using a geographic profile submitted by investigators. It uses crime locations to determine where the killer feels comfortable, and where he may live.
-Police have been reviewing video surveillance tapes from the shooting scenes, all public places.
- The Defense Department is providing military surveillance aircraft in the hunt for the killer.
- The Army has started searching its records for people with sniper training.
- Anyone with any leads is encouraged to call the tip line at (888) 324-9800. People can also write to police and mail their tips in to: P.O. Box 7875 Gaithersburg, Md. 20898-7875.
- A $500,000 reward has been posted for help in solving the attacks. Any money donated above that sum will be given to the victims' families.
- Police arrested Matthew Dowdy, 37, of Falls Church, Va., on Friday, Oct. 18, for providing false information to authorities. He had told police he saw the shooter driving a cream-colored van and firing an AK-74 assault rifle at the Home Depot incident. He was charged with making a false statement and will be arraigned Monday.
- On Sunday, Oct. 20, police said they believe the Beltway Sniper left a message with a telephone number at the scene of the Ponderosa shooting in Ashland. The telephone number found was believed to have been left there by the sniper intentionally. Police appealed to the person who left the message to contact them.
On Monday, Oct. 21, Police Chief Charles Moose held a brief news conference, but did not take any questions. He simply said: "The message that needs to be delivered is that we are going to respond to a message that we have received …We are preparing a response at this time."
- On Monday, ballistics experts matched the bullet from the Ashland, Va., victim with ammunition in the sniper shootings.
- On Tuesday, Oct. 22, police were stopping all vehicles around the Aspen Hill, Md., area after a man was shot on a commuter bus. Authorities are looking for a second vehicle other than a white van and are questioning witnesses to the Oct. 22 shooting.
- On Wednesday, Oct. 23, police search the yard of a Tacoma, Wash., home in search of ammunition evidence they say may be tied to the sniper shootings.
- Late Wednesday, police announce that an arrest warrant has been issued for John Allen Muhammad, also known as John Allen Williams, described as an "armed and dangerous man" wanted on weapons charges.
- At 3:19 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 24, police arrest 41-year-old Muhammad and 17-year-old John Lee Malvo while they're sleeping in their car at an I-70 rest stop in Frederick County, Md.
- At 9 a.m. on Thursday, police in Montgomery, Ala., confirm the sniper taskforce called them on Sunday regarding a September shooting at a liquor store there. A caller to the sniper investigation tip line claimed responsibility for both the sniper shootings and the Sept. 21 shooting outside ABC Beverage. Malvo's fingerprint was reportedly found on a weapons publication in connection with the Alabama investigation.
- Montgomery County police are asking people in the area to watch for things that seem out of place, such as a person sitting for a while in a vehicle in a spot where people might not normally be sitting.
- They're asking people to take note of motorists who are driving erratically and to give them information about the vehicle.
- Police are advising people in the region to "be observant" - and "make note of your surroundings."
- Schools across the Washington, D.C. region are canceling field trips and outdoor activities, and residents have been modifying their shopping habits to avoid danger.
- On Friday, Oct. 11, Spotsylvania and Stafford County schools in Virginia went into lockdown mode.
- On Saturday, Oct. 12, Spotsylvania county police urged area residents to be patient on concerns not related to the shooting spree, since hunting down the suburban killer is their No. 1 priority.
- Due to a heavy influx of tips about possible shootings, Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening banned outdoor shooting in four Washington-area counties.
- On Monday, Oct. 21, officials in the Ashland and Richmond areas of Virginia decided to close the schools, keeping more than 200,000 public school students out of class "based on the volume of parent and community concern." In Ashland, Randolph-Macon College also announced it would cancel classes on Monday.
- On Tuesday, Oct. 22, the Aspen Hill, Md., area and surrounding communities were in lockdown. Moose urged people to remain vigilant and observant, and report any odd occurrences, like people driving away from area erratically, and encouraged them to stay "resilient."
- Despite a warning from the sniper that "children are not safe," public schools were open in the Washington, D.C., area on Wednesday, Oct. 23.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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