Postal Murder Suspect at Large; Security Tight : Manhunt: Police pursue many tips but have ‘no idea’ where he might be. Stalked woman in protective custody.

While a gunman suspected of killing two people in a bloody series of attacks eluded police for a second day, armed guards on Friday patrolled the post office where one slaying occurred and authorities fielded a flurry of tips from worried residents.

Law enforcement officials were confounded by the disappearance of 38-year-old Mark Richard Hilbun, who was fired from his job at the Dana Point post office in December in part because he was stalking a female co-worker.

“The bottom line is we have absolutely no idea in the world where this guy is,” said Orange County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Lt. Richard Olson. “There is no organized search in any particular area. Where would we look?”

After a stopover in Dearborn, Mich., where another disgruntled postal worker killed an employee Thursday and wounded two others before killing himself, Postmaster Gen. Marvin Runyon arrived in Orange County on Friday to meet with postal workers.

With the suspect still at large, concerns about Runyon’s safety forced him to call off a news briefing, said David Smith, chief postal inspector of the Los Angeles division.

“We are dealing with an irrational individual who’s already killed two people,” Smith said. “Who could be a better target than the postmaster general?

Police suspect that Hilbun fatally stabbed his mother, Frances Hilbun, 63, and her dog, Golden, in Corona del Mar on Thursday morning, then drove to the Dana Point post office and opened fire inside an employee area, killing one worker and injuring another.

Several minutes later, he allegedly shot a man a few blocks away during a botched robbery. Hours later, about 3 p.m., he allegedly shot and critically wounded a motorist in Newport Beach because she was following him. The woman apparently wanted to talk to him because she thought he had stolen some magnetic car signs from her shop.

The woman, whose identity was not released, was in stable condition Friday.

The mail carrier whom Hilbun had been stalking remained in protective custody Friday, and her family went into hiding outside the area. But her father, Dohrman Springer, stayed behind and expressed a deep anger for the man who for months had harassed his 29-year-old daughter, Kim Springer.

“I’m scared for her,” Dohrman Springer said as he picked up a newspaper and looked at a picture of Hilbun. “All I want to do is to see this son of a bitch dead.”

Some law enforcement officials and acquaintances speculated that Hilbun, who was hospitalized twice in recent months for manic-depression, may already be dead, the victim of suicide. “People have talked about that. It’s always considered in cases like this where you have a felony suspect,” Olson said.

But in southern Orange County, caution was the watchword of the day for many who feared that the gunman might still be lurking in the area.

“I’m trying to live a normal life, but I’m careful. I lock my doors,” said Mary Miret, who lives in a gated community in Dana Point’s Monarch Bay.

More than two dozen public and private security officers patrolled the Dana Point post office. Other area post offices took similar measures.

Some south Orange County schools took added security measures, keeping students inside most of the day and adding extra monitors to watch the children. Postal officials and police said they were flooded with reports of possible sightings of Hilbun and his truck, some from as far as Victorville.

Even law enforcement officials found themselves swept up in the race to spot the man wanted in connection with Thursday’s rampage.

Laguna Beach Police Chief Neil Purcell said he was on his way home Thursday night when he saw a man in the alley behind the Laguna Beach home of Kim Springer. He matched the description of the suspect.

“I identified myself, drew my gun and ordered him to prone-out,” Purcell said. “He just said, ‘OK, don’t shoot.’ ” Purcell kept the gun on him until other officers arrived moments later. After studying a photo of Hilbun, Purcell realized it wasn’t him.

But there was debate over just what the suspect looked like. On Thursday, police distributed a photo of the 6-foot, 160-pound Hilbun, showing him with dark hair and a mustache. But several people who know him said Friday that the clean-shaven Hilbun, with graying hair, bears only scant resemblance to the man in the photograph carried widely by the local media.

“There have been reports that his hair is white, that he’s shaved his beard, that the mustache is on, the mustache is off,” said Postal Inspector Smith. “We believe it is possible that he may have changed his looks.”

Another uncertainty is Hilbun’s vehicle. At the time of the shootings, Hilbun reportedly was driving a bluish-gray, 1990 Toyota pickup with a kayak strapped on top. But police suspect he may have switched the license plates, and the kayak was found Thursday, dumped at a Dana Point home. Two possible California license plate numbers Hilbun is using are 4EO6099 or 2BTF706.

“It seems like a lot of people are looking out for this truck,” a police dispatcher said. “When they call, they are really hyper and excited because they think they are doing a good thing, which they are.” Unfortunately, as evening approached, none of the tips had panned out, police said.

In Newport Beach, where one of the shootings took place, police gave the case top priority. “Every person in this building at this point in time is working on those crimes. We’ve changed some scheduling and have quite a few people working overtime,” Lt. Paul Henisey said.

But Olson of the Sheriff’s Department said his investigators believe that Hilbun may not even be in the area, adding that investigators are baffled as to how Hilbun has managed to elude a swarm of police for the last two days--with no sign of even his vehicle.

“I wish we knew. Several police agencies were out in different areas, and the media coverage was enormous,” Olson said. “You tell me why we haven’t found that truck yet.”

In Dana Point, the Postal Service canceled deliveries indefinitely. Residents had to walk past armed guards to pick up their mail at the post office.

“It’s a lot easier to concentrate our forces to guard this one facility than to try to cover all the mail delivery routes. The safety of our employees is paramount,” Smith said. “It will be like this until we catch (the suspect) or until we are satisfied that he no longer poses a threat.”

Postal worker Peter Gates, who was slightly injured in the post office shooting, returned to work Friday. Officials said he was grazed by a bullet when he rushed toward Hilbun during the attack.

The shooting in this coastal town came just four hours after the Dearborn rampage. Officials said the two shootings should speed safety reforms that were initiated after a 1991 shooting in Michigan.

“We are going to put in more rigid controls on our screening process for potential new hires,” said Joseph Careveo, the general accounting officer for the Postal Service, who visited the Dana Point office Friday.

During his appearance at the Michigan facility Friday morning, Postmaster Gen. Runyon said he was appalled at this week’s violence, acknowledging that workers’ stress has contributed to the shootings.

“Our management style is too authoritarian--something most of us knew already,” Runyon said. “We’re changing the culture of the organization. We have made progress and will continue to make progress.”

Postal Inspector Pamela Prince in Dana Point said that with new screening procedures, “we certainly would have found out more” about Hilbun.

Hilbun was hospitalized twice recently for a manic-depressive condition, officials say, and he was arrested--but never convicted--last fall for allegedly making obscene and threatening phone calls to Springer. She dropped the charges after he began receiving psychological treatment and agreed to stay away from her.

Newly released military records showed Friday that during a four-year stint in the Air Force, Hilbun received law enforcement and security training. He was given an honorable discharge in 1980, records show.

PRECAUTIONS QUESTIONED: Postal workers wonder if the violent attacks could have been prevented. A20