Virginia Walmart shooter was manager who 'fired wildly' around the break room, motive unknown

The gunman who killed six people ina shooting spree at a Virginia Walmartwas the store manager who later reportedly shot himself dead too.He has been identified as Andre Bing, 31, who managed the store overnight and had been a Walmart employee since 2010.

Chesapeake police chief Mark Solesky stated at a press conference that "we believe it was a self-inflicted gunshot wound".He claimed that the attacker fired with a pistol and that the reason for the attack wasnot known yet.

Seven people, including the shooter, were killed in the store.

The police recovered one handgun and several magazines of ammunition from him. An employee told reporters that Bing had gathered the employees in the break room for a meeting to go over the morning plan. Bing then turned around and started firing randomly without looking at anyone in particular.

The police later informed that three people were found dead in the break room, including Bing, while one person was found dead near the entrance.

The exact number of those dead or injured was not known till two hours after the shooting. People had been picking up supplies for Thanksgiving during thebusy holiday week and there were around 50 people in the store at the time.

A 16-year-old boy was among the victims, the police said. The other victims were identified as Brian Pendleton, 38; Kellie Pyle, 52; Lorenzo Gamble, 43; and Randy Blevins, 70,from Chesapeake; and Tyneka Johnson, 22, of nearby Portsmouth.

The police said that within 45 minutes of reaching the Walmart, they found several fatalities inside the store, while one person was found dead outside the entrance.

The call about the shooting came in at 10:12 pm.Five victims were being treated at the Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.

Virginia state Senator Louise Lucas, in a statement on Tuesday night, said, “I am absolutely heartbroken that America’s latest mass shooting took place in a Walmart in my district in Chesapeake, Virginia tonight. I will not rest until we find the solutions to end this gun violence epidemic in our country that has taken so many lives.”

The latest such incident comes just days after a gunman opened fire at an gay club in Colorado, killing five people and injuring over 17. Earlier this year, a shooting at a school in Uvalde, Texasleft 21 dead.

In 2019, a Walmart shooting had happened in El Paso where 22 people died. The police said that the gunman was targeting Mexicans.

(With inputs from agencies)