Leonard Lake, Charles Wu and the Terror Bunker

“I’m a dangerous person. If society knew I existed and what I was doing, they would be worried.”
^{From the Diary of Leonard Lake}

*

It was coincidence that set things in motion. John Kallas was driving to the South City Lumber & Supply hardware store in South San Francisco on his day off when he saw an Asian guy there: early 20s, wearing thick glasses and a heavy parka that looked a bit over the top. The mild summer day was warm for him. He was holding a heavy vise in his hands. But instead of going to the cashier, he walked right past Kallas through the front door.

Karas, a reserve officer with the South San Francisco Police Department, tracked down a thief who threw a vise into his gold Honda Prelude. The man took off on foot. Karas called his colleagues.

Sunday, June 2, 1985, early afternoon.

It’s instinct that makes things go smoothly. A strange intuition told Officer Daniel Wright, who rushed to the scene, that there was something wrong with the other guy who rushed out of the store a little later: about 40 years old, with a big beard, bald head, and obviously upset. He said he didn’t want to cause trouble. He had paid the price for his bad habits. But Officer Wright didn’t give up and asked the man for his ID.

Scott Stapley was a licensed driver. The license plate on the Honda belonged to a Buick. Wright had previously found a .22 Ruger semi-automatic pistol and a silencer, which is prohibited in California, in the car. The officer handcuffed the man.

At police headquarters, Wright and his colleagues asked Scott Stapley for his date of birth, but he couldn’t give it. Naked. He asked for a pen and paper. “Dear Lynn. I love you. I forgive you. Freedom is the most important thing,” he wrote on the paper. “I’m sorry for the inconvenience. Love you, Leonard.” He put the note in his breast pocket. He was never the same after that.