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By JERRY LYNOTT; Times Leader Staff Writer
Saturday, May 04, 1996 Page: 1A
PITTSTON TWP. — A long-haul truck driver ended his road trip and running
dispute with his dispatcher Friday by killing the man with at least two shots
to the head at the Transcontinental Refrigerated Lines Inc. terminal, police
said.
Richard “Dick” Clark surrendered to police outside the company cafeteria
around 9 a.m., about 45 minutes after he allegedly shot Edward Thomas Lillis
in the first-floor office area of the Pittston Township business.
“I had enough of your bull—-,” Clark told Lillis before shooting him with
a 9mm semi-automatic handgun, according to arrest papers.
Lillis, 38, of Scranton, was pronounced dead at the scene around 9:20 a.m.
by Luzerne County Chief Deputy Coroner Joseph Shaver. An autopsy at Nesbitt
Memorial Hospital, Kingston, revealed Lillis died as a result of two gunshot
wounds to the head, Shaver said.
The arrest warrant affidavit did not detail what led to the shooting. But
drivers and employees of the company said the men had previous disagreements.
Talk after the shooting was that Clark, a nine-year employee who drove with
his wife as a team, was angry that Lillis would not pay a motel expense
submitted by the driver. Lillis had been with the company four years and left
behind a wife and three children, employees said.
Clark, 48, of Latrobe, was held without bail Friday in the Luzerne County
Correctional Facility. Police filed a single count of criminal homicide
charges against Clark with District Justice Diana Malast in Plains Township.
Malast arraigned Clark and set his preliminary hearing for 10 a.m. Friday.
Drivers, who asked not to identified, said they knew little of Clark other
than he and Lillis did not get along.
Lillis was a production manager who directed a crew of five fleet managers
and several hundred truckers, according to the drivers. Lillis was responsible
for keeping the freight moving, they said.
“I never had a problem with him (Lillis). The man helped me out on several
occasions when I needed help with things,” said one truck driver of the
Philadelphia area who called the Times Leader from California.
The driver, who declined to give his name, said he knew Clark was unhappy
with the company.
Another driver at the company said: “Ed (Lillis) was a good guy. If we had
any (pay) problems we went straight to him.”
Drivers said Clark had called the terminal on Thursday from Indianapolis to
say he would be arriving the next day.
Clark and his wife arrived sometime Friday morning, parked the tractor and
the empty trailer near the cafeteria and left the engine idling. The arrest
warrant affidavit placed Clark in the cafeteria lounge around 8:10 a.m.
Friday. He asked the whereabouts of another employee and headed toward the
main office building across the parking lot from the cafeteria, the affidavit
said.
In the office building, Clark confronted Lillis, exchanged words and pulled
a gun in front of other employees, the affidavit said.
“Clark fired twice. The first shot hit Lillis in the head and as Lillis was
falling, Clark shot him again. Clark then walked up to Lillis and shot him
again on the floor. Clark was four or five feet from Lillis when he shot the
first time,” the affidavit said.
A police officer discovered Clark coming out of the cafeteria, the
affidavit said. The shooting suspect, according to the affidavit, told the
officer, “I am unarmed and not going to give you any trouble. The gun is in
the truck.”
Clark told the officer “don’t tell my wife, she doesn’t know anything about
this,” the affidavit said.
Wife Joy Clark refused to let police interview her, a source close to the
investigation said.
Luzerne County District Attorney Peter Paul Olszewski Jr. commended the
owner and management of the company for their assistance. “They were extremely
helpful to law enforcement and showed concern for the well-being of their
workers who witnessed the shooting,” he said.
Almost 10 hours after the shooting, investigators served a search warrant
on the company in order to seize the loaded gun from the truck. The handgun
lay on the floor of the passenger side of the cab. Investigators retrieved the
gun, an ammunition clip, holster and a plastic bag with containers of
prescription medicine and a blister pack of over-the-counter medicine.
During the search of the cab and sleeping compartment, a police officer
finally shut off the diesel engine about 6 p.m.
TIMES LEADER/ALLISON V. SMITH
Shooting suspect Richard `Dick’ Clark told investigators the gun used in
the shooting Friday was in his truck. Pittston Township Police Chief Steven
Rinaldi led Clark to his arraignment on a charge of criminal homicide.
TIMES LEADER/RICHARD SABATURA
Some employees of Transcontinental Refrigerated Lines Inc. console each
other Friday morning after a fatal shooting in the offices of the Pittston
Township business. Stephen P. Hrobuchak, company president, said counseling
was available for the employees.