Connor Sturgeon, the 25-year-old suspect who fatally shot five people on Monday, livestreamed the shooting at the Old National Bank in Louisville, Kentucky.
During a press conference on Monday, Louisville Metro Police Department interim Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel was asked about reports that the shooting was livestreamed on social media.
"I will say this, that the suspect was livestreaming and unfortunately that's tragic to know that that incident was out there and captured," she said. "We're hopeful that we can have that incident removed."
A spokesperson for Meta, the parent company of Instagram, told Newsweek, "We are in touch with law enforcement and quickly removed the livestream of this tragic incident this morning."
The Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) reported the shooting Monday morning and said that there were "multiple casualties."
Police later said on Twitter that officers arrived at the scene within minutes of the shooting. Sturgeon was eventually fatally shot by police.
Initial reports by police said that four people were killed: Joshua Barrick, 40, Thomas Elliot, 63, Juliana Farmer, 45, and James Tutt, 64. A fifth victim was pronounced dead on Monday evening and identified by police as 57-year-old Deana Eckert.
Additionally, police said that Officer Nickolas Wilt was critically wounded and was being treated at a nearby hospital. In a tweet, the LMPD shared a photo of Wilt and wrote, "Officer Nickolas Wilt, a new officer to the LMPD, ran towards the gunfire today to save lives. He remains in critical condition after being shot in the head."
Sturgeon was identified as the suspected shooter on Monday. Gwinn-Villaroel said that he was fatally shot by officers who responded to the scene within minutes of receiving reports of a shooting at the Old National Bank. Police also confirmed that Sturgeon was an employee at the bank.
"This will be a long, complex investigation involving local, state and our federal partners," Gwinn-Villaroel said. "I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge our federal partners who have just been outstanding.... ATF, FBI, I thank you. Our local partners, University of Louisville police, EMS, emergency management services, thank you. Thank you for everything."
Gwinn-Villaroel also praised her own LMPD officers who responded to the shooting.
"Their resiliency showed today and their professionalism showed today," she said.
This is not the first time a shooting has been livestreamed, and Newsweek previously spoke with experts in the criminal justice field about this.
Thaddeus Johnson, a senior fellow with the Council on Criminal Justice and a former Memphis, Tennessee, police officer, told Newsweek in September 2022 that social media has "provided everyone a platform to be a star" on the "world stage."
"People are drawn to the attention," Johnson said.
Newsweek reached out to the LMPD via email and phone for further comment.
The LMPD later said on Twitter that Sturgeon was 25, not 23, as had originally been reported.
Update, 04/11/23, 6 a.m. ET: Connor Sturgeon's age has been corrected to 25, based on later information.
Update, 04/10/23, 5:44 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with further information.
Update, 04/11/23, 9:42 a.m. ET: This story has been updated with the news that a fifth victim had died.
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Matthew Impelli is a Newsweek staff writer based in New York. His focus is reporting social issues and crime. In ... Read more
