In the United States, the bank employee who opened fire at his workplace in Louisville targeted people he knew with a gun legally purchased a week earlier, police said Tuesday.
Louisville Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel told a news conference that 25-year-old bank clerk Connor Sturgeon purchased the AR-15 assault rifle on April 4 from a local dealer.
Armed with the rifle, Connor Sturgeon killed five people Monday — including a close friend of the Kentucky governor — as he broadcast the attack live on social media before being killed by police, authorities said. Eight other people were injured.
“We know it was targeted. He knew these people, of course, because he worked there,” Ms. Gwinn-Villaroel said, but she gave no indication of the motive for the shooting.
Body camera video of the officers will be released on Tuesday afternoon, she added.
Ms Gwinn-Villaroel praised the “heroic acts” of the officers who confronted the shooter without hesitation when they arrived.
“They went into danger in order to save and preserve life,” she said. They stopped the threat so more lives could be saved. No hesitation, and they did what they were called to do. »
Police officer Nickolas Wilt, who had graduated from training just 10 days earlier, was in critical but stable condition on Tuesday after being shot in the head, according to the University Hospital’s chief medical officer. of Louisville, Jason Smith.
Two of the four injured still in hospital had non-life-threatening injuries, Smith added.
The shooting, the 15th mass shooting in the country this year, comes just two weeks after an elementary school massacre in Tennessee that claimed the lives of three children and three adults. The governor of this state and his wife had had friends killed in this shooting, as in that of Monday.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear was emotional Monday when he announced he had lost a friend — Tommy Elliott — in the building shooting on East Main Street.
“Tommy Elliott helped me build my law career, helped me become governor, gave me advice on being a good father,” Mr. Beshear testified, his voice trembling with emotion. He’s one of the people I talked to the most in the world, and we very rarely talked about my work. He was an amazing friend. »
Josh Barrick, Jim Tutt, Juliana Farmer and Deana Eckert were also killed in the shooting, police said.
“There are no words to adequately describe the sadness and devastation our Old National family is going through as we mourn the tragic loss of our team members and pray for the recovery of all those who have been injured,” said Old National Bank chief executive Jim Ryan said in a statement.
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg urged unity as the community heals its grief.
“We all feel shaken by this, scared, angry and more. It is important that we come together as a community to address this particular tragedy, but not just this one, because the reality is that we have already lost 40 people to gun violence in Louisville this year,” said Mr Greenberg.
An interfaith vigil will be held Wednesday evening and will invite people to come and mourn and pray.
“This vigil will recognize the wounds, physical and emotional, that gun violence leaves behind,” he added.