Police: MALEVOLENT CREATION Guitarist's Shootout Claim Is Bogus

U.K.'s Rock Radio spoke to a homicide detective at the Fort Lauderdale Police Department about MALEVOLENT CREATION guitarist Phil Fasciana's claim that he was involved in a bizarre shootout at a convenient store in Fort Lauderdale on July 3, 2009.

In two separate e-mails to BLABBERMOUTH.NET (Story#1, Story#2),Fasciana claimed that he interrupted a store robbery which led to him being shot at four times before he was able to disarm the "homeless crackhead" and pump two bullets into the thug's head.

Fasciana told BLABBERMOUTH.NET: "When I walked into that store to buy something, I had no idea the store was in the middle of being robbed. I immediately felt something was wrong when I walked in, because it was very quiet and the man working behind the counter was staring at me like I was gonna rob the store. When that 80-pound homeless crackhead yelled at me and pointed his gun at me and fired four shots at me, I thought I was surely dead and had no time to react! After realizing I was not hit, I slowly crawled around to the back of the store, and while the gunman was screaming at the worker, I ran down the isle he was in and tackled him with the intention of beating the living shit out of him.

"When I tackled him and starting beating the shit out of him with the dude working there, he dropped the gun and I grabbed it. I had no intention of shooting him until he reached for another gun in his sneaker and looked at me, and before he got the chance to shoot at me again, that's when I shot him in the face two times and put an end to that whole nightmare!

"By no means am I a hero. I could have easily just ran out of the store like a pussy after realizing I was not shot and left the store worker to most likely get killed, but I was so pissed I just wanted to beat the fuck out of that loser who just tried to end my life over nothing. Anyone in my situation may have done the same thing, but nobody knows when something like that could happen to yourself or how to react just like me.

"I have a lot of personal family problems that are far worse then what I just went through and asked the police if it was possible to keep this story from getting in the press and having my dying father and grandfather have to know about something like that happening to me."

Commenting on Fasciana's claims, Detective Mark Shotwell of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department told Rock Radio that he's unable to find evidence that any such event ever took place.

"This did not happen," Shotwell said. "Our last murder was on June 22 and Fasciana was not involved. I'm certain of this. Even if the death was a result of self-defense, it would still be classed as a homicide and investigated as such.

"All witnesses, reportees, victims and suspects are entered into a database, but the most recent entry for Fasciana is on April 1, involving him and a female in a domestic dispute."

Rock Radio spoke to Fasciana about Detective Shotwell's comments, and the guitarist replied: "The store where it took place isn't considered Fort Lauderdale. What happened is true and I really don't know how it leaked into Blabbermouth because I never told anyone about it."

(For the record, Fasciana's original statement was sent to BLABBERMOUTH.NET from one of two separate e-mail accounts that Phil has confirmed that he is in control of. BLABBERMOUTH.NET did not edit Fasciana's comments except for clarity and no other person contributed to the story.)

But Shotwell explained: "There are about 15 suburbs near Fort Lauderdale, but all murders use the Broward County Medical Examiner's office for autopsies — mandatory in a homicide. There have been no murders in the entire county during July.

"Homeless crackheads would trade a gun as soon as they got it and I've never seen one with two guns. And the scenario as described would have made headlines — even in Miami."

Fasciana's final word on the matter (as told to Rock Radio): "This is the second time I was involved in the death of a homeless man. Me and a friend were driving, completely sober, about six years ago, and a homeless drunk dude ran into the street. We ran him over and killed him with several witnesses. I'm flipped out over this and many near-death experiences I have had living in this shithole Fort Lauderdale."

Fasciana's statement #1:

Fasciana's statement #2: