Stephen Paddock: Difference between revisions
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On the night of October 1, 2017, at 10:05 p.m., Paddock opened fire from his hotel room on a large crowd of concertgoers at the [[Route 91 Harvest]] music festival on the [[Las Vegas Strip]] in [[Paradise, Nevada]], killing 58 people and wounding 546 others.<ref name="abc.net">{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-05/las-vegas-shooting-stephen-paddock-disturbed-and-dangerous/9018366|title=Vegas shooter 'disturbed, dangerous', stockpiled weapons for decades: police|date=October 5, 2017|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|accessdate=October 5, 2017}}</ref> |
On the night of October 1, 2017, at 10:05 p.m., Paddock opened fire from his hotel room on a large crowd of concertgoers at the [[Route 91 Harvest]] music festival on the [[Las Vegas Strip]] in [[Paradise, Nevada]], killing 58 people and wounding 546 others.<ref name="abc.net">{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-05/las-vegas-shooting-stephen-paddock-disturbed-and-dangerous/9018366|title=Vegas shooter 'disturbed, dangerous', stockpiled weapons for decades: police|date=October 5, 2017|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|accessdate=October 5, 2017}}</ref> |
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Paddock planned the attack meticulously.{{r|abc.net}} On September 25, six days beforehand, he checked in to a room on the 32nd floor of the [[Mandalay Bay]] Hotel, which overlooked the festival grounds.<ref name=Pearce>Pearce, Matt et al. [http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-vegas-shooting-20171009-story.html “Las Vegas gunman shot security guard a full six minutes before opening fire on concertgoers, police reveal”], [[Los Angeles Times]] (October 9, 2017).</ref> There were 23 rifles and one handgun found inside his room by the police afterwards,<ref name="NYTLive">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/02/us/las-vegas-shooting.html |title=Multiple Weapons Found in Las Vegas Gunman's Hotel Room |date=October 2, 2017 |accessdate=October 2, 2017 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="cbs171002">{{cite news |title=ATF: Las Vegas shooter had 12 guns modified to mimic automatics – live updates |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/las-vegas-shooting-last-night-stephen-paddock-live-updates/ |publisher=CBS News |agency=Associated Press |date=October 3, 2017 |accessdate=October 6, 2017}}</ref> including four [[Daniel Defense#Products|DDM4 assault rifles]], three [[FN Herstal#Rifles|FN-15 rifles]], one [[Colt AR-15|AR-15]] assault rifle with forward front grip, one .308-caliber [[AR-10]] battle rifle, and one [[AK-47#Production|AK-47]] (all very expensive), including a large quantity of ammunition in special |
Paddock planned the attack meticulously.{{r|abc.net}} On September 25, six days beforehand, he checked in to a room on the 32nd floor of the [[Mandalay Bay]] Hotel, which overlooked the festival grounds.<ref name=Pearce>Pearce, Matt et al. [http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-vegas-shooting-20171009-story.html “Las Vegas gunman shot security guard a full six minutes before opening fire on concertgoers, police reveal”], [[Los Angeles Times]] (October 9, 2017).</ref> There were 23 rifles and one handgun found inside his room by the police afterwards,<ref name="NYTLive">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/02/us/las-vegas-shooting.html |title=Multiple Weapons Found in Las Vegas Gunman's Hotel Room |date=October 2, 2017 |accessdate=October 2, 2017 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="cbs171002">{{cite news |title=ATF: Las Vegas shooter had 12 guns modified to mimic automatics – live updates |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/las-vegas-shooting-last-night-stephen-paddock-live-updates/ |publisher=CBS News |agency=Associated Press |date=October 3, 2017 |accessdate=October 6, 2017}}</ref> including four [[Daniel Defense#Products|DDM4 assault rifles]], three [[FN Herstal#Rifles|FN-15 rifles]], one [[Colt AR-15|AR-15]] assault rifle with forward front grip, one .308-caliber [[AR-10]] battle rifle, and one [[AK-47#Production|AK-47]] (all very expensive), including a large quantity of ammunition in special magazines, holding up to 75 rounds each.<ref name=guns>{{cite news |title=The ‘tricked out’ guns Las Vegas shooter used in massacre |publisher=New York Post |first1=Gabrielle |last1=Fonrouge |first2=Larry |last2=Celona |first3=Danika |last3=Fears |date=October 3, 2017 |url=http://nypost.com/2017/10/03/the-tricked-out-guns-las-vegas-shooter-used-in-massacre/}} ''Also in:'' {{cite news |title=The Las Vegas shooter modified a dozen rifles to shoot like automatic weapons |first1=Alex |last1=Horton |first2=Devlin |last2=Barrett |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2017/10/02/video-from-las-vegas-suggests-automatic-gunfire-heres-what-makes-machine-guns-different/ |publisher=Washington Post |date=October 3, 2017}} ''Also in:'' {{cite news |title=Room 32135: Stephen Paddock had 23 guns, purchased legally, in his Las Vegas suite |author=National Post Wire Services |url=http://nationalpost.com/news/world/room-32135-stephen-paddock-had-23-guns-purchased-legally-in-his-las-vegas-suite |date=October 3, 2017 |publisher=Nationalpost.com}}</ref> Two of the rifles were resting on bipods,{{r|guns}} and were equipped with high-tech [[telescopic sight]]s.<ref name="WSJGun">{{cite news |last1=Palazzolo |first1=Joe |last2=Elinson |first2=Zusha |title=Las Vegas Gunman Had Arsenal in Hotel Room |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/las-vegas-suspect-likely-used-automatic-rifle-in-massacre-1506966716 |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=October 2, 2017 |accessdate=October 2, 2017}} {{paywall}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Delreal |first1=Jose A. |last2=Bromwich |first2=Jonah Engel |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/02/us/stephen-paddock-vegas-shooter.html |title=Stephen Paddock, Las Vegas Gunman, Was a Gambler Who Drew Little Attention |work=The New York Times |date=October 2, 2017 |accessdate=October 2, 2017}}</ref> Twelve of the weapons were outfitted with [[bump fire]] stocks, a recently-available firearms accessory that allows semiautomatic rifles to fire rapidly, simulating [[Automatic firearm|fully-automatic]] gunfire.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://apnews.com/ff26110203da4a28bfd1d99022fb401c/Once-an-obscure-device,-%27bump-stocks%27-are-in-the-spotlight |title=Once an obscure device, 'bump stocks' are in the spotlight |first=Lisa Marie |last=Pane |date=October 5, 2017 |accessdate=October 5, 2017 |publisher=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> Audio recordings of the attack indicated Paddock used these stocks to fire at the crowd in rapid succession.<ref name="M.K.">{{cite news |title=Guns, loaded high-capacity magazines found in Vegas shooter's room: Sources |url=http://abcnews.go.com/US/19-weapons-found-las-vegas-shooters-room-sources/story?id=50228093 |date=October 2, 2017 |first=Meghan |last=Keneally |publisher=ABC News |accessdate=October 2, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Las Vegas gunman may have used special device to fire faster, expert says |url=http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/oct/02/las-vegas-suspect-stephen-paddock-gun-semi-automatic |first=Lois |last=Beckett |date=October 2, 2017 |work=The Guardian |accessdate=October 2, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Gunman's Vantage Point and Preparations Opened the Way for Mass Slaughter |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/02/us/las-vegas-mass-shooting-weapons.html |first1=C.J. |last1=Chivers |first2=Thomas |last2=Gibbons-Neff |first3=Adam |last3=Goldman |date=October 2, 2017 |work=The New York Times |accessdate=October 3, 2017}}</ref> |
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Six minutes before the attack on the concertgoers, at 9:59 p.m. Paddock – who placed a baby monitor camera on a service cart outside his room – fired about 200 rounds through his door, wounding an approaching hotel security guard.<ref name="ABC5">{{cite news |title=Las Vegas shooter booked hotel overlooking Lollapalooza |first1=Morgan |last1=Winsor |first2=Julia |last2=Jacobo |first3=Josh |last3=Margolin |date=October 5, 2017 |url=http://abcnews.go.com/US/las-vegas-shooter-booked-hotel-overlooking-lollapalooza-visited/story?id=50273390 |publisher=ABC News}}</ref> At 10:05 p.m. he began firing hundreds of rounds in rapid succession at the crowd of thousands below. He stopped shooting ten minutes later at 10:15 p.m.{{r|Pearce}} According to chronology of the events established by the authorities in the following days,<ref name="LAT9">{{cite news |title=Here's a timeline of the Las Vegas shooting — with the crucial detail police left out last time |author=LAT staff; no by-line |publisher=Los Angeles Times |url=http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-vegas-shooting-timeline-revised-20171009-story.html |date=October 9, 2017}}</ref> the first two police officers reached the 32nd floor of the hotel at 10:17 p.m. and a minute later were shown the location of his door.{{r|LAT9}} Between 10:26 and 10:30 p.m. additional eight LVPD officers joined them and began clearing other suites along the hallway.{{r|LAT9}} At 10:55 p.m. eight [[SWAT]] team members entered the floor through the second stairwell nearest to Paddock’s suite.{{r|LAT9}} More than an hour after the first two officers arrived,<ref name="LA:3">{{cite news |url=http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-las-vegas-shooting-live-updates-why-did-it-take-police-so-long-to-1507174474-htmlstory.html |title=Why did it take police so long to breach Las Vegas gunman's room? Here's a new timeline |date=October 4, 2017 |work=The Los Angeles Times |access-date=October 5, 2017 |issn=0458-3035}}</ref><ref name="Newsweek">{{cite web |url=http://www.newsweek.com/las-vegas-shooting-cops-took-more-hour-storm-gunmans-room-676198 |title=Las Vegas Shooting: Cops Took More Than An Hour to Storm Gunman's Room |work=Newsweek |first=Christal |last=Hayes |date=October 2, 2017 |access-date=October 3, 2017}}</ref> at 11:20 p.m. the police breached his door with an explosive charge, and entered the room.{{r|LAT9}} Paddock was found dead inside his suite from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.newsweek.com/vegas-shooter-stephen-paddock-planned-escape-left-note-shooting-himself-678572 |title=Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock planned to escape but killed himself as the SWAT team moved in |first=Jack |last=Moore |date=October 5, 2017 |access-date=8 October 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Andrew |last=Blankstein |first2=Tom |last2=Winter |first3=Jonathan |last3=Dienst |first4=Alex |last4=Johnson |first5=Sarah |last5=Fitzpatrick |first6=Corky |last6=Siemaszko |title=Marilou Danley, Las Vegas Gunman's Girlfriend, Says She Had No Idea |date=October 4, 2017 |accessdate=October 6, 2017 |website=[[NBC News]] |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/las-vegas-shooting/marilou-danley-girlfriend-las-vegas-gunman-arrives-u-s-sources-n807331}}</ref> In addition to the firearms and accessories found in Paddock's hotel suite, there was a note that reportedly included handwritten calculations about where he needed to aim to maximize his accuracy.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/las-vegas-gunman-stephen-paddock-note-hotel-room-details-of-bullet-trajectory/|title=Note in Las Vegas gunman's hotel room included details of bullet trajectory|date=October 7, 2017|access-date=October 7, 2017|language=en}}</ref><ref name=CNN-100717>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/07/us/las-vegas-shooting-investigation/index.html |title=Source: Las Vegas shooter left behind calculations for targeting crowd |work=CNN |date=October 7, 2017 |accessdate=October 7, 2017 |first1=Jason |last1=Hanna |first2=Steve |last2=Almasy |first3=Euan |last3=McKirdy |first4=Matt |last4=Rehbein}}</ref> The note featured only the actual distance to the target, his own elevation, and the bullet trajectory relative to the line of fire.<ref>{{cite news |title=Police reveal chilling details of note left by Las Vegas gunman |first=Chantal |last=Da Silva |publisher=The Independent |date=October 8, 2017 |url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/las-vegas-massacre-stephen-paddock-gunman-had-note-on-where-to-shoot-to-maximise-death-toll-a7988691.html}}</ref> |
Six minutes before the attack on the concertgoers, at 9:59 p.m. Paddock – who placed a baby monitor camera on a service cart outside his room – fired about 200 rounds through his door, wounding an approaching hotel security guard.<ref name="ABC5">{{cite news |title=Las Vegas shooter booked hotel overlooking Lollapalooza |first1=Morgan |last1=Winsor |first2=Julia |last2=Jacobo |first3=Josh |last3=Margolin |date=October 5, 2017 |url=http://abcnews.go.com/US/las-vegas-shooter-booked-hotel-overlooking-lollapalooza-visited/story?id=50273390 |publisher=ABC News}}</ref> At 10:05 p.m. he began firing hundreds of rounds in rapid succession at the crowd of thousands below. He stopped shooting ten minutes later at 10:15 p.m.{{r|Pearce}} According to chronology of the events established by the authorities in the following days,<ref name="LAT9">{{cite news |title=Here's a timeline of the Las Vegas shooting — with the crucial detail police left out last time |author=LAT staff; no by-line |publisher=Los Angeles Times |url=http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-vegas-shooting-timeline-revised-20171009-story.html |date=October 9, 2017}}</ref> the first two police officers reached the 32nd floor of the hotel at 10:17 p.m. and a minute later were shown the location of his door.{{r|LAT9}} Between 10:26 and 10:30 p.m. additional eight LVPD officers joined them and began clearing other suites along the hallway.{{r|LAT9}} At 10:55 p.m. eight [[SWAT]] team members entered the floor through the second stairwell nearest to Paddock’s suite.{{r|LAT9}} More than an hour after the first two officers arrived,<ref name="LA:3">{{cite news |url=http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-las-vegas-shooting-live-updates-why-did-it-take-police-so-long-to-1507174474-htmlstory.html |title=Why did it take police so long to breach Las Vegas gunman's room? Here's a new timeline |date=October 4, 2017 |work=The Los Angeles Times |access-date=October 5, 2017 |issn=0458-3035}}</ref><ref name="Newsweek">{{cite web |url=http://www.newsweek.com/las-vegas-shooting-cops-took-more-hour-storm-gunmans-room-676198 |title=Las Vegas Shooting: Cops Took More Than An Hour to Storm Gunman's Room |work=Newsweek |first=Christal |last=Hayes |date=October 2, 2017 |access-date=October 3, 2017}}</ref> at 11:20 p.m. the police breached his door with an explosive charge, and entered the room.{{r|LAT9}} Paddock was found dead inside his suite from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.newsweek.com/vegas-shooter-stephen-paddock-planned-escape-left-note-shooting-himself-678572 |title=Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock planned to escape but killed himself as the SWAT team moved in |first=Jack |last=Moore |date=October 5, 2017 |access-date=8 October 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Andrew |last=Blankstein |first2=Tom |last2=Winter |first3=Jonathan |last3=Dienst |first4=Alex |last4=Johnson |first5=Sarah |last5=Fitzpatrick |first6=Corky |last6=Siemaszko |title=Marilou Danley, Las Vegas Gunman's Girlfriend, Says She Had No Idea |date=October 4, 2017 |accessdate=October 6, 2017 |website=[[NBC News]] |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/las-vegas-shooting/marilou-danley-girlfriend-las-vegas-gunman-arrives-u-s-sources-n807331}}</ref> In addition to the firearms and accessories found in Paddock's hotel suite, there was a note that reportedly included handwritten calculations about where he needed to aim to maximize his accuracy.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/las-vegas-gunman-stephen-paddock-note-hotel-room-details-of-bullet-trajectory/|title=Note in Las Vegas gunman's hotel room included details of bullet trajectory|date=October 7, 2017|access-date=October 7, 2017|language=en}}</ref><ref name=CNN-100717>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/07/us/las-vegas-shooting-investigation/index.html |title=Source: Las Vegas shooter left behind calculations for targeting crowd |work=CNN |date=October 7, 2017 |accessdate=October 7, 2017 |first1=Jason |last1=Hanna |first2=Steve |last2=Almasy |first3=Euan |last3=McKirdy |first4=Matt |last4=Rehbein}}</ref> The note featured only the actual distance to the target, his own elevation, and the bullet trajectory relative to the line of fire.<ref>{{cite news |title=Police reveal chilling details of note left by Las Vegas gunman |first=Chantal |last=Da Silva |publisher=The Independent |date=October 8, 2017 |url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/las-vegas-massacre-stephen-paddock-gunman-had-note-on-where-to-shoot-to-maximise-death-toll-a7988691.html}}</ref> |
Revision as of 04:38, 15 October 2017
Stephen Paddock | |
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File:Stephen Craig Paddock.jpg Paddock in a photo posted to his girlfriend's Facebook page | |
Born | Stephen Craig Paddock April 9, 1953 Clinton, Iowa, U.S. |
Died | October 1, 2017 Paradise, Nevada, U.S. | (aged 64)
Cause of death | Suicide by self-inflicted gunshot wound |
Occupation(s) | Accountant, real estate investor, gambler |
Known for | Perpetrator of the 2017 Las Vegas Strip shooting |
Parent | Benjamin Hoskins Paddock |
Details | |
Date | October 1, 2017 c. 10:05 – 10:15 p.m. |
Location(s) | Las Vegas Strip, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. |
Target(s) | Audience of the Route 91 Harvest music festival |
Killed | 59 |
Injured | 546 |
Stephen Craig Paddock (April 9, 1953 – October 1, 2017)[1] was an American mass murderer[2][3][4] responsible for the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. He fired modified semi-automatic weapons from his room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel into a crowd of approximately 22,000 concertgoers at a country music festival on the Las Vegas Strip on October 1, 2017.[5][6]
Paddock, who lived in Mesquite, Nevada, died at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The incident surpassed the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting as the deadliest mass shooting by a lone gunman in U.S. history, with 58 fatalities (excluding Paddock) and 546 injuries.[7] Paddock's motive for the shooting is currently unknown.
Early years, education and career
Stephen Paddock was born in Clinton, Iowa.[8][9] He grew up in Tucson, Arizona, and Sun Valley, California, as the eldest of four sons of Benjamin Hoskins Paddock.[10] Benjamin was a bank robber who was arrested in 1960 when Stephen was seven years old.[11] Benjamin was later convicted and escaped prison in 1969, subsequently appearing on the FBI's most-wanted list. Stephen was 15 years old at the time.[12] According to his brother Eric, they never really knew their father as he was never with their mother.[5]
In 1967 Paddock completed his studies at Richard E. Byrd Middle School, then graduated from John H. Francis Polytechnic High School in 1971,[13] and from California State University, Northridge in 1977, with a degree in business administration.[14]
Paddock worked for the federal government from about 1975 to 1985. He was a letter carrier for the U.S. Postal Service from 1976 to 1978. After that, he worked for six years as an Internal Revenue Service agent until 1984. Then, he was a federal auditor for one year, in 1985, focusing on defense contractors. Towards the end of the 1980s, Paddock worked for three years as an internal auditor for a company that later merged to form Lockheed Martin.[15] His work career after this period is not entirely clear. He is known to have run a real-estate business with his brother Eric.[16] He lived in the Greater Los Angeles Area and owned personal property in areas including Panorama City, Cerritos, and North Hollywood from the 1970s to early 2000s.[15][17] He also owned rental properties around the country, including two rundown apartment buildings in the working-class neighborhood of Hawthorne, California. In addition, he owned an apartment complex in the Dallas suburb of Mesquite, which he sold in 2012.[17]
Relatives said Paddock was worth at least $2 million when he sold off the real-estate business.[18][19] Among his most profitable investments was an apartment complex purchased in 2004, which gave him more than half a million dollars in annual income by 2011. The IRS records show he made $5 million to $6 million in profits from its sale in 2015.[20]
Paddock was a prolific gambler,[21] but the extent to which he may have profited from it is not clear.[20] He was not well known among high-stakes gamblers in Las Vegas and was not considered a "whale" by the casinos.[22] His game of choice was the solitary video poker which he had played for over 25 years; unlike traditional poker which involves bluffing, the primary skill is mathematical precision calculating odds.[22][23] He lived a mostly nocturnal life, gambling after dark and sleeping during the day; he generally disliked being out in the sun.[24]
Personal life
According to court records, Paddock was married and divorced twice. He was first married from 1977 to 1979, and for the second time from 1985 to 1990, both marriages in Los Angeles County, California.[5] Family members say he stayed on good terms with his ex-wives.[25] His brother says that Paddock had no political or religious affiliations of any kind.[5][26][27]
Paddock lived in Texas and in California,[10][28] then in a retirement community in Melbourne, Florida, from 2013 to 2015.[5] In 2016, he moved from Florida to another retiree home in Mesquite, Nevada,[5][29] about 80 miles (130 km) northeast of Las Vegas.[5] According to property records, he bought a newly constructed single-family home in Mesquite in January 2015,[30] and sold his two-bedroom home in Melbourne.[18] Paddock lived in Mesquite for several years with his Flipino-born girlfriend whom he met at the Atlantis in Reno, Nevada.[30] According to neighbors, they also lived together in Reno.[28] Many Mesquite residents recalled only seeing him around town; those familiar with Paddock described him as someone who did not speak much and kept a low profile. The local gun community never saw him at any of the gun clubs or shooting ranges, including makeshift ones in the nearby desert.[31]
An Australian acquaintance said he met Paddock in the United States and in the Philippines. He described Paddock as intelligent and methodical. In his account, Paddock claimed to have won a lot of money using a betting strategy by applying algorithms to gambling on machines (not on tables). Paddock was conversant in gun laws and in defending his view of the Second Amendment. The acquaintance considered Paddock a generous man whenever he and his girlfriend visited him.[32]
In 2010, Paddock applied for and received a U.S. passport.[33] He went on 20 cruise ship voyages, visiting several foreign ports including in Spain, Italy, Greece, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates. He was accompanied by his girlfriend on nine of them.[34] They went to the Philippines together in 2013 and 2014.[35] During the last year of his life they traveled on a cruise to the Middle East.[36]
Paddock's only recorded interaction with law enforcement was a minor traffic citation years before the shooting, which he settled in court.[37][38] According to court records, Paddock also sued the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas in September 2012, claiming he "slipped and fell on an obstruction on the floor" and was injured as a result; the lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice in October 2014.[37]
During his last months, he reportedly smelled of alcohol, was despondent,[25] and he is reported to have filled prescriptions for the anti-anxiety drug Valium (diazepam) in 2013,[24] 2016, and 2017.[39][40][41] According to a Business Insider article, “As it stands now, the link between diazepam and Paddock's actions is tenuous at best — though some celebrities have said otherwise.”[42]
Two weeks before the attack, his girlfriend went to her native Philippines at his suggestion. Paddock wired her $100,000 to buy a house there.[43] He was spotted in Las Vegas with another woman, reported by investigators to be a prostitute.[44] It has been confirmed that she is not an accomplice, and is not considered a suspect. Her name has not been released.[45] Two days prior to the shooting, Paddock was recorded by a home surveillance system driving alone to an area for target practice located near his home.[46]
Las Vegas shooting
On the night of October 1, 2017, at 10:05 p.m., Paddock opened fire from his hotel room on a large crowd of concertgoers at the Route 91 Harvest music festival on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, killing 58 people and wounding 546 others.[7]
Paddock planned the attack meticulously.[7] On September 25, six days beforehand, he checked in to a room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel, which overlooked the festival grounds.[48] There were 23 rifles and one handgun found inside his room by the police afterwards,[49][50] including four DDM4 assault rifles, three FN-15 rifles, one AR-15 assault rifle with forward front grip, one .308-caliber AR-10 battle rifle, and one AK-47 (all very expensive), including a large quantity of ammunition in special magazines, holding up to 75 rounds each.[51] Two of the rifles were resting on bipods,[51] and were equipped with high-tech telescopic sights.[52][53] Twelve of the weapons were outfitted with bump fire stocks, a recently-available firearms accessory that allows semiautomatic rifles to fire rapidly, simulating fully-automatic gunfire.[54] Audio recordings of the attack indicated Paddock used these stocks to fire at the crowd in rapid succession.[47][55][56]
Six minutes before the attack on the concertgoers, at 9:59 p.m. Paddock – who placed a baby monitor camera on a service cart outside his room – fired about 200 rounds through his door, wounding an approaching hotel security guard.[57] At 10:05 p.m. he began firing hundreds of rounds in rapid succession at the crowd of thousands below. He stopped shooting ten minutes later at 10:15 p.m.[48] According to chronology of the events established by the authorities in the following days,[58] the first two police officers reached the 32nd floor of the hotel at 10:17 p.m. and a minute later were shown the location of his door.[58] Between 10:26 and 10:30 p.m. additional eight LVPD officers joined them and began clearing other suites along the hallway.[58] At 10:55 p.m. eight SWAT team members entered the floor through the second stairwell nearest to Paddock’s suite.[58] More than an hour after the first two officers arrived,[59][60] at 11:20 p.m. the police breached his door with an explosive charge, and entered the room.[58] Paddock was found dead inside his suite from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.[61][62] In addition to the firearms and accessories found in Paddock's hotel suite, there was a note that reportedly included handwritten calculations about where he needed to aim to maximize his accuracy.[63][64] The note featured only the actual distance to the target, his own elevation, and the bullet trajectory relative to the line of fire.[65]
During an investigation, Ammonium nitrate, often used in improvised explosive devices, was found in the trunk of his car, along with 1,600 rounds of ammunition and 50 pounds (23 kg) of Tannerite, a binary explosive used to make explosive targets for gun ranges.[7][66] However, investigators clarified that while Paddock had "nefarious intent" with the material, he did not appear to have assembled an explosive device.[67][68]
According to police, Paddock acted alone. His motive is unknown.[69][70][71][72] The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility, but American law enforcement officials have given no evidence of a connection between Paddock and ISIL.[36] No evidence has been found of any brain abnormality, according to autopsy results, though toxicology and other autopsy results have yet to be disclosed.[73]
References
- ^ Maglio, Tony (October 2, 2017). "Stephen Paddock: What we know about Las Vegas mass shooter". TheWrap. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
- ^ McCarthy, Andrew C. (October 2, 2017). "Is the Las Vegas Mass-Murderer a Terrorist?". National Review. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
- ^ Law, James (October 3, 2017). "What we know about Las Vegas mass murderer Stephen Paddock". The Queensland Times. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
- ^ "Gun shop owner's chilling revelation about the Las Vegas mass murderer". Yahoo! News Australia. October 3, 2017. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g Grinberg, Emanuella (October 6, 2017). "Something went 'incredibly wrong' with Las Vegas gunman, brother says". CNN. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
- ^ Adams, Char (October 2, 2017). "Jason Aldean Ran from Stage When Las Vegas Gunman Opened Fire: 'Tonight Has Been Beyond Horrific'". People. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
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{{cite news}}
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