Las Vegas authorities have identified 64-year-old Stephen Paddock as the shooter who opened fire on concert attendees of the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas on Sunday night, ABC News reports.
During a press briefing after the event, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Sheriff Joseph Lombardo identified the gunman as a “local resident” of the area.
Videos by PopCulture.com
Paddock opened nine seconds of non-stop automatic gunfire from the 32nd flood of Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in the first round of shooting, followed by two shorter rounds. Once police identified the location from which the shots were fired, they cleared out Mandalay Bay’s 29th floor and worked their way up to the 32nd floor in search for the shooter.
Shortly before midnight, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department reported that “one suspect is down,” and soon after police said they did not believe there were any other active gunmen.
Police also named Paddock’s “companion,” Marilou Danley, as a person of interest in the investigation. They later tweeted that “we are confident we have located” Danley, as well as two vehicles associated with the shooter.
Paddock’s motive for opening fire is not clear at this time. The lone gunman’s shots killed at least 50 people and have injured 200 people as of 3:30 a.m. local time.
