According to officials, five people were killed after an employee opened fire at a bank in Louisville, Kentucky, then livestreamed the crime on Instagram.
The victims ranged in age from 40 to 64. A rookie police officer who had just graduated from the force two weeks prior was among the nine others hurt.
The officer was shot in the head and is remains in serious condition following brain surgery.
Within three minutes, police arrived and fatally shot the attacker in a gunfight.
At around 08:30 a.m. local time, the shooting occurred at the Old National Bank in the city center (12:30 GMT).
Caleb Goodlett told local media that as the attack began, his wife, a bank employee, barricaded herself inside the vault.
Several witnesses said they saw a gunfight between police officers and the lone attacker.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said one of the victims was a “amazing buddy” of his, Tommy Elliot, a senior vice-president at the bank.
“Tommy Elliott helped me grow my legal profession, helped me become governor, and gave me advise on how to be a good father,” Mr Beshear added.
All of the victims have been identified:
63-year-old Thomas Elliot
Tutt, James, 64
40-year-old Joshua Barrick
Farmer, Julianna, 45
Deana Eckert is 57 years old.
What we know about the victims of the Kentucky bank shooting
Officer Nickolas Wilt, 26, of the Louisville Metro Police Department, was shot in the head.
Mr Wilt graduated from the training on March 31, according to City Councilman Anthony Piagentini, and his brother is enrolled in the police academy.
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg described the attack as a “heinous act of targeted brutality.” The mayor mentioned that he had recently been the victim of a firearms attack.
A mentally disturbed individual who broke into his campaign office last year fired at him.
According to two survivors, the bank’s shootings started in a ground-floor conference room on Monday.
“Whoever was next to me got shot – blood on my shirt,” one man claimed, pointing to his garment.
Police identified the suspect as 25-year-old Connor Sturgeon, who used an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle throughout the incident and was live-streaming the shooting online.
“It’s awful to know that the incident was documented,” said Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel.
Meta, the company of Instagram, stated that it “immediately removed the broadcast of this unfortunate tragedy this morning.”
An online profile describes the attacker as a syndications associate and portfolio banker at Old National Bank. He became a full-time employee of the company last year after interning there for three summers.
According to officials, he had no prior involvement with law enforcement.
According to US media, he was recently informed by the bank that he would be dismissed and had written a memo outlining his plans for the mass shooting before reporting to work on Monday.
According to data maintained by the Gun Violence Archive, there have been at least 146 mass shootings in 2023, defined as those in which at least four people were shot, including at least 15 since April began.
President Joe Biden called that Congress approve gun control legislation on Monday, saying, “Too many Americans are paying the price of inaction with their lives.”
Kentucky is one of 26 states that allow most adults over the age of 21 to buy and carry a handgun without a permit.
