Court records give some insight into the thought process of the man charged in a Neenah standoff and shooting.
Forty-five-year-old Brian Flatoff now faces 16 charges, including murder and attempted murder, for a standoff that led to an officer being shot, and a hostage killed, in Neenah.
Court records released Wednesday say the Stevens Point man was upset with a person familiar with Eagle Nation Cycles who paid $3,000 to bail him out of the Outagamie County jail in a drunk driving case. They say that man also took Flatoff’s motorcycle and told him that he had to pay $8,000 to get it back.
The records say that Flatoff went to a friend’s house in Neenah the night of December 4th, and was upset about the situation. He got drunk over the course of the night and following morning he eventually fell asleep. They say he got into a confrontation with the friend after he woke up, took the friend’s gun, without her knowledge, and went to the cycle shop to confront the man who he felt stole his motorcycle.
Records say when he got there, the man wasn’t in the building, but he lost his cool when he saw the motorcycle was being disassembled and painted. Flatoff then threatened the hostages with a gun, and later fired at police when they tried to enter the building. One hostage was shot by police as he tried to escape.
Records say Flatoff told investigators that he went to the shop to kill the man who took his motorcycle. He’s expected to be back in Winnebago County court in late January.
WHBY