The Scotsman

‘Lone wolf ’ behind the worst mass shooting in US history

●Police seek motive after gunman kills 58 and injures over 500 in Las Vegas

- By SALLY HO IN LAS VEGAS

At least 58 people have been killed and another 515 were hurt after a gunman opened fire on a Las Vegas outdoor country music festival in the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.

Swat teams who stormed the gunman’s room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino skyscraper found he had killed himself after shooting at revellers enjoying the Route 91 Harvest Festival.

The gunman, identified as Stephen Craig Paddock, 64, of Mesquite, Nevada, had as many as ten guns with him, including rifles, authoritie­s said.

There was no word on a motive for the attack, but a law enforcemen­t official said there was no immediate indication that the massacre was connected to internatio­nal terrorism.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibi­lity for the attack and said the gunman was “a soldier” who had converted to Islam months ago, but it provided no evidence to back up the claim.

Country music star Jason Aldean was performing on Sunday night at the end of the three-day festival in front of a crowd of more than 22,000 when the gunman opened fire from

inside the 44-floor Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino across the street on Las Vegas Strip.

Paddock had checked into the hotel room on Thursday, authoritie­s said. Police said he was a retiree with no criminal record in the Nevada county where he lived.

The gunman’s brother, Eric Paddock, who lives in Florida, told the Orlando Sentinel: “We are completely dumbfounde­d. We can’t understand what happened.”

Prime Minister Theresa May wrote on Twitter: “The UK’S thoughts are with the victims and the emergency services responding to the appalling attack in Las Vegas.”

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said he was “horrified” by the attack, and that his thoughts were with those caught up in it.

The Foreign Office said it was in contact with authoritie­s in Las Vegas and that it was “ready to help” any British people affected.

A spokeswoma­n said: “Any British people in Las Vegas should follow the advice of emergency services, and check the Foreign Office travel advice.”

British tennis star Laura Robson was among those attending the concert.

She shared two pictures of herself at the event, wearing a cowboy hat with an American flag emblazoned on it.

Asked by a Twitter follower if she was all right, she wrote: “I’m okay. We were right there...sounded like fireworks at first then everyone started running.”

She added it had been a “scary” experience.

In an address to the country, US president Donald Trump calledthea­ttack“anactofpur­e evil” and added: “In moments of tragedy and horror, America comes together as one. And it always has.”

Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said authoritie­s believed it was a “lone wolf ” attack, while the US Homeland Security Department said there was no “specific credible threat” involving other public venues in the US.

US attorney general Jeff Sessions offered the support of the FBI and other federal agencies, but noted that the investigat­ion was being led by the sheriff in Las Vegas – signalling that the shooting was not believed to be an act of internatio­nal terrorism.

Las Vegas authoritie­s called for blood donations and set up a hotline to report missing people and speed the identifica­tion of the dead and wounded.

They also opened a “family reunificat­ion centre” for people to find loved ones.

Harrowing video footage of the shooting shows Aldean stopping his performanc­e on stage after an initial volley of shots could be heard.

After a pause, the gunman fired another volley, with the muzzle flashes visible from the casino as victims fell to the ground, while others fled in panic.

Police shut down busy Las Vegas Boulevard, and federal and state authoritie­s converged on the scene. Interstate 15 was briefly closed, and flights at Mccarran Internatio­nal Airport were suspended.

Hospital emergency rooms were jammed with the wounded. Ruben Kihuen, a Democrat whose congressio­nal district includes a portion of Las Vegas, visited a hospital were some of the victims were taken and said: “Literally, every single bed was being used, every single hallway was being used. Every single person there was trying to save a life.”

The dead included at least three off-duty police officers from various department­s who were attending the concert, authoritie­s said. Two onduty officers were wounded, one critically, police said.

Hours after the shooting, Aldean posted on Instagram that he and his crew were safe and that the shooting was “beyond horrific”.

The brother of the gunman responsibl­e for the worst mass shooting in modern US history has asked where he got his weapons, saying he was “not an avid gun guy at all”.

Stephen Paddock, 64, was named by police as the perpetrato­r who massacred at least 58 people from a 32nd-floor hotel room.

The Nevada native also wounded more than 515 people after opening fire on the Route 91 Harvest Festival on the Las Vegas Strip late on Sunday.

Speaking to CBS News in Orlando, Florida, his emotional brother, Eric Paddock, described his

Killer was ‘not an avid gun guy, with no religious or political affiliatio­n’

 ??  ?? 0 Revellers run for cover carrying a wounded person with them after shooting broke out at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas
0 Revellers run for cover carrying a wounded person with them after shooting broke out at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas
 ??  ??
 ??  ??
 ??  ??
 ??  ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Kingdom