The manager of a Virginia Walmart who killed six people and himself and injured several others in a Tuesday night massacre has been identified as 31-year-old Andre Bing, the city of Chesapeake said on Twitter.
“He was armed with one handgun and had multiple magazines on his person,” the city said.
Bing was an “overnight team lead” and had been employed with Walmart since 2010, the company said in a statement.
Authorities were working Wednesday to identify any more witnesses to the violence and were also digging into the shooter’s background for information on what could have motivated the attack, police said in a news release.
At least 50 people were inside the Walmart when the violence erupted, police said. Some of them have begun publicly sharing their accounts of how a calm night turned into a horrifying tragedy.
The violence marks yet another mass shooting in a place traditionally seen as safe – from schools to hospitals to stores.
Just 170 miles west of Chesapeake, a 22-year-old student at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville allegedly opened fire on fellow students this month, killing three of them on a bus returning to campus from a field trip to Washington, DC.
Last weekend, a 22-year-old shot and killed five people at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and 19 others were injured, authorities said.
The US has suffered more than 600 mass shootings so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. Both the non-profit and CNN define mass shootings as those in which four or more people are shot, not including the assailant.
Suspect came in and ‘just started spraying’
The deadly rampage sarted around 10:12 p.m. Tuesday, less than an hour before the Walmart Supercenter was set to close.
Employee Kevin Harper said a colleague entered the breakroom and started shooting.
“I just left out the breakroom … (the gunman) starts cappin’ people up in there,” Harper said in a Facebook Live video. The video is no longer on his Facebook page, but it has been re-shared on social media.
“He came in there and just started spraying,” Harper said. “I’m sorry for the victims.”
Four people injured in the shooting remained hospitalized Wednesday morning, Chesapeake Police Chief Mark Solesky said. At least two were in critical condition, said Dr. Michael Hooper, vice president and chief medical officer at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.
Investigators swept the store overnight into Wednesday, searching for victims or people who may have been hiding, Chesapeake police said.
“Three individuals, including the shooter, were located deceased in the break room of the store,” the city of Chesapeake tweeted. “One victim was located deceased toward the front of the store. Three other victims were transported to local hospitals for further treatment, but succumbed to their injuries.”
‘This one is especially painful’
Joetta Jeffery said her mother, Betsy Umphlett, sent her texts from inside the store saying bullets were flying.
“I’m crying, I’m shaking,” Jeffery told CNN. “I had just talked to her about buying turkeys for Thanksgiving, then this text came in.”
Jeffery said her mother is not injured, but traumatized by the tragedy.
A reunification center was set up at the Chesapeake Conference Center for families seeking details about loved ones who were at the store. City officials have asked that only relatives or emergency contacts of those inside visit the center.
John Furner, Walmart US’ president and CEO, said the mass shooting in Chesapeake was exceptionally tragic because the assailant was an employee.
“We feel tragedies like this personally and deeply. But this one is especially painful as we have learned the gunman was a Walmart associate,” Furner said in a statement. “The entire Walmart family is heartbroken. Our hearts and prayers are with those impacted, and we are grateful for the actions of first responders.”
The FBI’s Norfolk division said the agency is assisting the Chesapeake Police Department in the investigation.
Authorities ask anyone with information about the shooting to call 1-800-CALL-FBI.
CNN’s Amanda Jackson, David Williams, Michelle Watson, Chris Boyette, Holmes Lybrand, Dave Alsup, Joe Sutton, Braden Walker, Lauren Koenig, Brian Todd, afAndy Rose and Josh Campbell contributed to this report.
"and" - Google News
November 24, 2022 at 04:09AM
https://ift.tt/502oX8H
The Walmart manager who killed 6 people 'just started spraying' bullets in the break room, employee says - CNN
"and" - Google News
https://ift.tt/BMiZg9m
https://ift.tt/b42C1kY
And
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "The Walmart manager who killed 6 people 'just started spraying' bullets in the break room, employee says - CNN"
Post a Comment