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Office shooting suspect found dead

Mesa police have discovered a vehicle and body matching the description of a shooting suspect from Wednesday's deadly attack at an office building in Central Phoenix.

Police have confirmed that Arthur Douglas Harmon, 70, was found at the Mesa Riverview shopping center in Mesa. The body, which was found by landscapers in a small grove of palm trees near an intersection, appears to have a self-inflicted gunshot wound. A handgun was found near the body.

The 2013 Kia Optima rental vehicle Harmon was driving was found at a different location in the shopping center.

 

The Victims

Killed in the Wednesday incident was Steve Singer, the owner of Fusion Contract Centers LLC. An attorney representing Fusion, Mark Hummels, was among the wounded.

Hummels' law firm, Osborn Maledon, released a statement Thursday saying they have been informed he is not expected to survive the shooting.

Colleagues of Hummels described him as a smart, competent and decent man who was a rising star in his profession and dedicated to his wife, 9-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son.

"This is a day of just unspeakable sorrow," said 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Andrew Hurwitz, who hired Hummels straight out of law school to serve as a law clerk from 2004 to 2005 while Hurwitz was serving on the Arizona Supreme Court.

A third victim, Nichole Hampton, had been taking photos outside and was returning to her office when she says she heard gun shots and glass shattering. A bullet went through her left wrist, severly injuring her thumb. Hampton is a Human Resources representative for MD Home Health, which has an office in the building.

Hampton, 32, said the incident has not changed her mind about gun control. She and her husband own guns.

"I do think people should be able to have guns to protect themselves, but I don’t know you can control people that are unstable in some way," she said.

Hampton said one of the men at the scene who helped her find cover in a nearby office suite had a gun drawn for protection. She said her first thought when she heard gunshots was that another mass shooting was underway.

 

The Dispute

Court documents indicate Harmon was scheduled to go to a law office in that Central Phoenix building for a settlement conference in a lawsuit he filed last April.

The documents show Scottsdale-based Fusion Contact Centers LLC hired Harmon to refurbish office cubicles at two call centers in California, but a contract dispute arose.

Fusion says Harmon was paid nearly $30,000 under the $47,000 contract. But Fusion asked him to repay much of the money when it discovered that the cubicles could not be refurbished.

Harmon's lawsuit sought payment for the remainder of the contract, $20,000 in damages and reimbursement for storage fees for the cubicles and legal costs.

 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.Updated 1/31/2013 at 5:41 p.m.