RICHMOND | Convicted D.C. sniper Lee Boyd Malvo told actor William Shatner on a cable TV special that he and his partner tried to recruit fellow shooters for their 2002 spree and his accomplice killed one man for backing out, according to the program, which aired Thursday.
In a telephone call from a Southwest Virginia prison, Malvo told Mr. Shatner two men planned to join in the attacks to make them more deadly but reneged. Malvo said his fellow shooter, John Allen Muhammad, killed one of the men in retaliation. Malvo did not identify them in the interview for a show on the A&E cable channel.
Malvo's revelations came in response to questions about claims by a psychiatrist that the duo had co-conspirators. The psychiatrist, Neil Blumberg, who worked with Malvo before his trial, also said Malvo had confessed to more shootings in addition to the spree that terrorized the Washington region in 2002, when 13 people were hit and 10 of them died.
An FBI spokeswoman declined to comment Thursday on the claims. Malvo's attorney during his trial, Timothy Sullivan, did not return a call.
In the TV interview, Malvo initially denied his psychiatrist's claims that he and Muhammad had co-conspirators. Once pressured, he said someone in Arizona helped them get weapons and explosives, and a man in New York was supposed to help them get out of the country "when it's all said and done."
He said both later backed out of plans to help with the shootings.
"There was supposed to be three to four snipers with silenced weapons," said Malvo, who was 17 at the time of the shootings. "In this way we could do a lot more damage along the entire Eastern Seaboard."
Dr. Blumberg said Malvo told him Muhammad made him shoot two of the co-conspirators once they backed out of the plan. Malvo told Mr. Shatner only one of the men was killed and that Muhammad did it.
Dr. Blumberg also said Malvo told him there was a third co-conspirator who was supposed to have joined them in Washington but did not. Malvo did not mention that person during the interview with Mr. Shatner.
The one-hour "Confessions of the DC Sniper With William Shatner: An Aftermath Special" premiered late Thursday on A&E.
