In yet another shooting incident in the United States, five people were killed and at least eight others were injured on Monday (April 10) in the US city of Louisville, Kentucky. The authorities also revealed that the shooter, a 25-year-old bank employee, live-streamed the attack when he opened fire at his workplace.
The death toll reached five when Louisville authorities confirmed in the evening that a fifth victim, a 57-year-old woman, had died of her injuries. Police also shot and killed the alleged attacker, who has been identified as a white man named Connor Sturgeon. He was an employee of Old National Bank, located downtown in Kentucky’s largest city.
Police said that they reached at the scene within three minutes of receiving reports of gunfire in the bank at 8:38am (1238 GMT). Interim police chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel told an afternoon press conference that the suspect even shot at officers, who returned fire and killed him.
Gwinn-Villaroel said that the “weapon of choice was a rifle”, but she didn’t specify whether or not it was an assault weapon of the ones that are commonly used in such shootings in the US.
The police chief further confirmed that the shooter had broadcast a live video of the attack on Instagram. AFP in its report mentioned that a spokesperson for Meta, the social media app’s parent company, told the news agency that it was “in touch with law enforcement and quickly removed the live stream of this tragic incident this morning.”
Biden condemns the incident
President Joe Biden condemned the shooting incident, calling it a “senseless” killing. Frustrated Biden wrote on Twitter: “Too many Americans are paying for the price of inaction with their lives.”
The US president is also pushing for lawmakers in Washington to break a years-long deadlock and take action against gun violence as he slammed the opposition, he wrote: “When will Republicans in Congress act to protect our communities?”
Once again, our nation mourns after a senseless act of gun violence – Jill and I pray for the lives lost and impacted by today’s shooting.
Too many Americans are paying for the price of inaction with their lives.
When will Republicans in Congress act to protect our communities?
— President Biden (@POTUS) April 10, 2023
After the deadly shooting incident, a massive police deployment was seen outside the Old National Bank building and a report by CNN mentioned that some people hid in the bank vault to save themselves. They even contacted the police from inside.
In another report by Fox affiliate WDRB, an eyewitness was cited as saying that she heard multiple gunshots and breaking glass while in her car near the site.
As quoted, the woman said: “Gunfire erupted, like, right over my head. When I turned, I saw that one of the windows in the bank had been blown out.”
(With inputs from agencies)
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