Ten people died and three were injured in a gun attack at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York. The announcement was made by Police Chief Joseph Gramaglia on Saturday. The 18-year-old gunman was arrested, according to Mayor Byron Brown. A racially motivated motive is also being investigated; Governor Kathy Hochul spoke of a “terrorist act”.
The shooter is not from that community, Brown explained at a news conference. “The shooter traveled hours from outside this community to commit this crime against the people of Buffalo.” What started out as a beautiful day turned into a terrible day. “A day that breaks the hearts of every member of our community,” said Brown. “This is a day of great pain for our community. We cannot allow this hateful individual to divide us or our country.”
Directed head shots
According to police, the suspect was wearing a helmet and protective gear, was heavily armed and opened fire in the supermarket parking lot. He filmed the act and broadcast it live on social media. According to police, the alleged attacker walked through the aisles of the supermarket and shot his victims in the head. A security guard shot the 18-year-old, but the bullets were trapped in his bulletproof vest. The guard was then killed by the young attacker.
As police chief Gramaglia explained, the criminal had a gun pointed at his own neck when police stopped him in an anteroom of the supermarket. However, the officers could have persuaded the shooter to surrender.
suspected racist act
There is “certain evidence” that points to a racist act, he said. Investigators examined an ideological manifesto of the alleged perpetrator that had appeared on the Internet, in which he expressed racist ideas that could have motivated his crime. According to official information, eleven people among the dead and wounded are African Americans. The act is now being investigated as a hate crime and as an act of “violent, racially motivated extremism” under federal law, said Stephen Belongia, the FBI special agent in charge of Buffalo. The neighborhood is inhabited mainly by blacks, the alleged aggressor is white.
The governor of New York state described the fatal shooting as terrorism. The perpetrator is a right-wing extremist who committed a “terrorist act,” Hochul told a news conference on Saturday night. She sincerely hopes that this person who has just committed a hate crime will spend the rest of his days behind bars. Hochul said the murder weapon was acquired legally but modified.
US President Joe Biden expressed his condolences. The act was “terrible”, the White House said. “The president and first lady are praying for the victims and their families.” The White House said Biden was informed of the incident by his homeland security adviser and will continue to be informed.