Dayton Shooter Carried at Least 100 Rounds

Dayton Police say 24-year-old behind Saturday night’s shooting wore a bulletproof vest, mask and hearing protection

By: Ben Ariel

Richard Biehl, the Chief of Police in Dayton, Ohio, said that Connor Betts, the 24-year-old responsible for the shooting overnight Saturday in the city’s entertainment district, wore a bulletproof vest, mask and hearing protection.

Betts carried at least 100 rounds as he opened fire, said Biehl, according to The Associated Press.

The shooter killed his sister and eight others in less than 30 seconds before police fatally shot him, he added.

Biehl said he could not yet answer why Betts carried out the shooting.

He added the .223-caliber rifle Betts used was ordered online from Texas and transferred to Betts at a firearms dealer in the area.

Officials say 31 more people were wounded in the shooting attack, which began a little past 1:00 a.m., either by gunfire or as they fled.

It was the second mass shooting in the US in less than 24 hours.

Hours before the shooting in Dayton, a mass shooting occurred in a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, killing 20 and injuring 27.

Responding on Sunday to the two shootings, President Trump told reporters that “hate has no place in our country”. The president, who added that he will have a statement on Monday about the shootings, told reporters he had spoken to the FBI, Attorney General William Barr, and members of Congress about what can be done to prevent such violence.

According to an AP report, Americans did not get a glimpse of the president in the immediate aftermath of the shootings in El Paso and Dayton. Not until Trump and the first lady prepared to fly back to Washington in the late afternoon Sunday did he appear before cameras.

While connecting “hate” and mental illness to the shootings, Trump made no direct mention of gun laws, a factor brought up by Democratic officials and those seeking their party’s nomination to challenge Trump’s reelection next year. He also ignored questions about the anti-immigration language in a manifesto written by the El Paso shooter that mirrors some of his own.

Trump tried to assure Americans he was dealing with the problem and defended his administration in light of criticism following the latest in a string of mass shootings.

“We have done much more than most administrations,” he said, without elaboration. “We have done actually a lot. But perhaps more has to be done.” (INN & AP)