On Friday, police identified the alleged shooter in the attack on an Indianapolis FedEx facility the night before that left eight people dead as 19-year-old Brandon Scott Hole.
Police officers reported on the matter confirmed the identity of the gunman to The Associated Press and other media. The hill has contacted the Indianapolis police department.
A FedEx spokesman confirmed to the AP and the New York Times that Hole was a former employee of the company and added that he was cooperating closely with investigators.
Indianapolis police chief Randal Taylor told reporters officials were interviewing witnesses and gathering evidence to determine the motive for the mass shooting, the latest to shake the nation.
Taylor said a “significant” number of employees at FedEx’s location were members of the Sikh community, according to the AP.
Deputy Chief of Police Craig McCartt said Friday that the gunman used a rifle to randomly open fire on people in the parking lot and inside the building.
“There was no confrontation with anyone who was there,” McCartt explained. “There was no disturbance, there was no argument. He just showed up to start shooting at random. ”
Police said the shooting only lasted a couple of minutes and that the gunman was shot and killed before police entered the facility.
Four people outside the building died in the shooting and four more died inside.
McCartt said several people were injured in the attack, with five people hospitalized.
The AP reported that the Indianapolis coroner’s office has not yet been able to enter the scene to identify the victims, as police were still collecting evidence.
Thursday’s attack comes after a series of recent mass shootings in the United States and is at least the third mass shooting this year in Indianapolis alone.
The AP noted that in January, five people, including a pregnant woman, were shot dead, and in March, a man allegedly killed three adults and a child before kidnapping his daughter after an argument in a house.
President Biden on Friday condemned the last attack, writing in a statement released by the White House that “gun violence is an epidemic in America.”
“Every day too many Americans die from armed violence,” the president continued. “It tarnishes our character and pierces the very soul of our nation.”
“We can and must do more to act and save lives,” he added.
The president in his statement reiterated requests for Congress to pass gun control prevention legislation, including measures on universal fund controls and a ban on assault weapons.
Updated: 4:13 PM