Photo: J Pat Carter / Getty Images
The man who killed six people and wounded four others inside a Walmart with a gun before committing suicide was an employee of the store, officials reported Wednesday at a press conference.
On attacker died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, they said.
The incident took place shortly after pm on Tuesday. Authorities said the store was secured after officers passed between 80 and 40 minutes searching the store for anyone injured.
They said the store would remain closed for several days during the investigation, The Washington Post reported.
Chesapeake City Manager Chris Price said at the press conference: “I am devastated by the senseless act of violence that took place last night in our city.”
The Washington Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Virginia State Police have said their agencies will assist Chesapeake Police with the investigation being addressed by clients.
The officers responded around : 12 pm to a report of a shooting at a Walmart on Sam’s Circle in Chesapeake, where they found several dead and wounded, the police.
The city noted in a tweet at 4: 30 am Wednesday that there were seven deaths, including the shooter.
Authorities believe there was a shooter, said the Chesapeake Officer Leo Kosinski to reporters earlier.
“ It was wild. He was a manager, one of the managers,” a uniformed Walmart employee said in a Facebook live stream, explaining that he narrowly avoided being killed in the rampage.
“He blew his brains out and everything. He killed the girl there and everything. She got in and started shooting. I feel sorry for the victims”, he said.
“I just got out of the break room…the manager came in and started covering people in there, he started shooting. Unfortunately, we lost some of our associates,” he added as a woman was heard crying next to him.
Police have not confirmed the reports on who the attacker was, but emphasized that the person was dead. Authorities also haven’t said how the shooter died.
Kosinski said he didn’t believe police fired the shots, but he couldn’t say if the shooter was dead. by a self-inflicted shot.
The call reporting the shooting came at : pm when Walmart was still open to the public and the night shift workers had recently registered, WAVY station reported.
A clerk on duty told the news station that the shooting broke out in the back of the store. One person was also reportedly found dead outside the main entrance.
A spokesperson for Sentara Norfolk General Hospital confirmed to WAVY that five people they were being treated there.
“We are shocked by this tragic event at our Chesapeake, Virginia store,” Walmart said in a tweet Wednesday by the morning.
“We are praying for those affected, the community and our associates. We are working closely with law enforcement and are focused on supporting our partners,” he added.
The shooting occurs three days later Anderson Lee Aldrich allegedly opened fire at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs, killing five people and injuring dozens more before he was held down by patrons.
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