Videogamer shoots 2 dead, kills self at tournament

MIAMI: Two people were killed and 11 others wounded when a video game tournament competitor went on a shooting rampage before turning the gun on himself in the northern Florida city of Jacksonville, local police said.

Sheriff Mike Williams named the suspect of the shooting at a Madden 19 American football esports tournament on Sunday as 24-year-old David Katz from Baltimore, Maryland.

"There were three deceased individuals at the scene, one of those being the suspect, who took his own life," Williams told reporters.

He said local fire and rescue transported nine victims -- seven of whom had gunshot wounds -- to local hospitals, while another two people who were shot took their own transportation to hospital.

Williams said Katz was a competitor in the esports tournament and used "at least one handgun" to carry out the shooting.

Madden is a hugely popular multi-player video game based on the National Football League, which in a statement said it was "shocked and deeply saddened by the horrific tragedy."

The tournament at The Landing entertainment and shopping complex -- a regional qualifier for finals in Las Vegas with a USD 25,000 prize -- took place at the GLHF Game Bar.

Sheriff Williams said the shooting occurred inside the Chicago Pizza restaurant in the complex around 1:30 pm (1730 GMT).

Earlier on Twitter, the Jacksonville Sheriff 's Office had urged people hiding in locked areas of The Landing to stay in place and call 911 to make their location known.

In disturbing footage apparently captured as part of a livestream on video gaming website Twitch, several gunshots could be heard in the background, before the stream disconnected.

Twitch removed the video, but it remained available on social media. Police said they were in possession of footage capturing the incident.