Victim of deadly Danville shooting had restraining order against suspect

DANVILLE, Calif. (KTVU) - Mark Sypian had been angry at 76-year-old John Moore and his family going back at least five years.

On Sunday afternoon, Danville police say Sypian opened fire, killing Moore, in a parking lot on Fostoria Way. 

His whereabouts were unknown until Wednesday, when police say the 51-year-old Sypian shot himself outside his family's home in St. Charles, Ilinois about 40 miles outside Chicago. He was taken to a hospital with potentially life-threatening injuries.

"We're pretty shocked by the whole incident," said Tammy Mercado, co-president of the Danville Rotary Club, where the victim once served as president.

Court records reveal that the suspect once dated one of the victim's daughters. The relationship ended badly and the woman, her mother and Moore all filed restraining orders against Sypian because of alleged threats and harassment.

In a 2014 application for a restraining order, Moore wrote, "He has the capacity to be violent and harm women without remorse. I believe he has the capacity to be a sociopath."

The suspect claimed Moore owed him at least $200,000. Sypian repeatedly emailed threatening messages filled with profanity, according to Moore.

In one email, Sypian wrote to Moore, "You honestly can't think I was going to let you destroy ever (sic) aspect of my life and get away with it."

Friends of the victim are grappling with their loss. 

"It's a great loss for Danville. It's a great loss for the Danville rotary," said club co-president Robert Combs.

"Always had a smile on his face. Just a genuinely nice guy. He was very generous with his time, very generous with his money," Combs said.

Mercado said, "He always had a twinkle in his eye. He was always fun to be around. You know, he joked a lot. He was just generally a really good guy. 

They said Moore had never talked about the issues he had with the suspect. 

"No, that was his private life and that was something he didn't choose to share," Combs said.

But what Moore did share, was his love for the community.

"Often he donated his vacation home for a raffle or two. In fact in one instance it was a live auction and he donated it twice because he had two people interested in it," Combs said.

Mercado said, "There's a big hole in our club right now. He will be missed."