Hospital gunman diagnosed with PTSD after Iraqi War

Photo courtesy Ellis County Sheriff's Office.

Lorenzo Zarate of Austin, Texas was arrested by the Waxahachie Police Department at Baylor Scott & White at Waxahachie on Saturday, September 3, 2016 following allegations he pointed a gun at his daughter and entered into a standoff with police.

WAXAHACHIE — As Lorenzo Zarate, 32, of Austin sits in the Ellis County jail on a $200,000 bond, more details are coming out that may help investigators understand what led him to enter into a standoff with Waxahachie police.

Zarate is accused of entering the Emergency Room of Baylor Scott & White Medical Center at Waxahachie Saturday evening at around 6:23 p.m. while holding a gun to the torso of an infant female.

According to Amy Hollywood, Director of Communications for the City of Waxahachie, hospital personnel quickly called 911 and cleared out the waiting room while Zarate handed the child to hospital staff. He had another child in the car, who was secured safely.

Police arrived at 6:24 p.m., entering into a standoff with Zarate. A hostage negotiator was called in and after about 15 minutes of negotiation with the negotiator, the standoff ended and Zarate was taken into custody at approximately 7:40 p.m.

Zarate is charged with one count of making a terroristic threat, one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one county of trying to take a gun from an officer. His bonds were set at $80,000, $80,000 and $40,000 for each of the charges, respectively.

According to multiple news reports from 2008, Zarate is a 2003 Iraqi War veteran who was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He and his wife were expecting their first child at the end of 2008.

Zarate's mother-in-law, Consuelo Miralrio, has confirmed the children are back home safely following Saturday's incident and is praying her son-in-law gets medical help.

"Happy the girls are home safe. This is a difficult situation for our family. Our Faith is going get us through it. TRULY believe God has a plan, and he saw our babies and others involved to safety. Praying my son n law gets the proper medical attention he needs," Miralrio wrote in a Facebook post.

"Lorenzo is a good man, just in a bad situation. God hear our Prayers and is working in our favor. This I feel to be true in my heart."

A photo of Zarate capturing one of Saddam Hussein's former security guards appeared on the cover of The New York Times in 2008.

Zarate, an aspiring rapper who goes by Loudmouf, drew the attention of Kayne West and MTV. He was surprised by a visit from West during MTV's "Choose or Lose & Kanye West Present: Homecoming". West provided Zarate with six months of rent, studio time, a mentorship at a radio station and other gifts.

"The Army could teach you to kill, kill, kill, but they can’t teach you to come back home and be a civilian," Zarate said during the episode.

"When you tell people the stuff that I've been through a lot of people just don't understand. If it wasn't for my wife it would be a lot worse. I would be in jail or I would be in the cemetery. She's held me down."

Zarate described how he was pleading for help to get back to normal.

"I'm just trying to get help. I'm dying to get help. They put me on some drugs for paranoia. They put me on drugs for the mood. I want to be back to the person I was," he said during the MTV show.

View the MTV episode at the end of this article.

Zarate described to MTV about the anger he had during the war and while capturing the insurgent.

"I had a lot of anger in my heart," Zarate said. "I could've gone to jail [if I shot him], but the way my mind was at that time, I could've been likely to shoot him, and that's what I wanted to do,"

The Austin Chronical covered Zarate in 2008 following his appearance on MTV.

"You don't trust people the way you used to," Zarate said. "The world looks different through your eyes now."

The New York Times also featured Zarate and his struggles with PTSD. They stated that over 70% of veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have some level of PTSD. They also quoted a study released in April 2008 that stated approximately 20% have symptoms of major depression or stress disorder.

MTV - Choose or Lose & Kanye West Present: Homecoming

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MTV - A Night for Vets NYC

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