Brother of Las Vegas shooter says family ‘completely dumbfounded’
Eric Paddock says ‘absolutely no indication’ Stephen Paddock intended to carry out shooting, says he was ‘just a guy’ who liked to gamble
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The brother of the man who killed at least 50 people at an outdoor music festival on the Las Vegas Strip said he’s “completely dumbfounded” by the shooting, which is the deadliest in modern US history.
Speaking with NBC News, Eric Hudson Paddock, who lives in Orlando, Florida, said he had “no idea” why his brother Stephen Paddock carried out the mass shooting.
“Mars just fell into the earth,” he said. “We’re completely dumbfounded.”
“We are completely at a loss,” he added, saying his brother was “just a guy” who liked to gamble at hotels in Las Vegas.
Vegas Shooter's Brother: "We're lost. I don't understand this." https://t.co/rszdpxtLVu pic.twitter.com/tbB5fAjxXR
— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 2, 2017
Little is known about Stephen Paddock or his possible motives for the attack.
Eric Paddock told The Daily Mail that his brother was not associated with any religious or political groups.
He said there was “absolutely no indication [Stephen Paddock] could do something like this.”
“Something happened, he snapped or something,” he told the Daily Mail.
“We have absolutely no idea. Our condolences go to the victims and all their families,” he added.
Eric Paddock said his mother was “in shock” and is having a hard time comprehending the news.
“Our family is OK, we’re sitting in here in our house hoping that everyone doesn’t attack us,” he said.”My mother is 90 years old, lives down the street from me, we’re just completely dumbfounded.”
Police said Monday they believe Paddock killed himself before officers used explosives to break into his hotel room, where he had a large cache of weapons.
“We believe the individual killed himself prior to our entry,” Las Vegas Sheriff Joseph Lombardo told a news conference.
He said officers found “in excess of 10 rifles” upon entering the 32nd floor hotel room from which gunman Stephen Paddock opened fire at concertgoers below, killing at least 50 and injuring hundreds.
There was no immediate word on the motive for the attack. The US Homeland Security Department said there was no “specific credible threat” involving other public venues in the US.
Country music star Jason Aldean was performing Sunday night at the end of the three-day Route 91 Harvest Festival in front of a crowd of 22,000 when Paddock opened fire from inside the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino.
Video of the shooting showed Aldean stopping and the crowd getting quiet as if unsure of what had just happened.
Paddock paused and then fired another volley, the muzzle flashes visible from the casino, as more victims fell to the ground while others fled in panic. Some hid behind concession stands, while others crawled under parked cars.
SWAT teams quickly descended on the concert and the casino, and officers used explosives to get into the hotel room where the suspect was inside, authorities said.
“What we are going to try to do as best we can is to get our first responders back on their feet and responding and conducting a proper investigation to ensure that we have the safety of this community at heart,” Lombardo said.
Heavily armed police early Monday morning searched the Nevada retirement-community home of the gunman.
Mesquite Police Chief Troy Tanner said police surrounded and entered the single-family home where Paddock, 64, lived with 62-year-old Marilou Danley.
He said Danley was not at the house and police saw “no movement” inside before serving a search warrant at the one-story, three-bedroom home in the Sun City Mesquite retirement community, about 80 miles from Las Vegas.
Police said Danley was no longer a person of interest and had been located in the Philippines.
Tanner said detectives from Las Vegas and North Las Vegas were at the scene in the resort community of Mesquite, located near the Arizona state line.
The shooting at the country music festival was the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.
At least 50 people were killed and more than 400 victims were taken to the hospital, authorities said.
Lombardo said they believe this was a “lone wolf” attack.
“It’s a devastating time,” Lombardo said.
Police shut down the usually busy Las Vegas Boulevard and authorities across the state and federal ranks converged on the scene as dozens of ambulances ferried those struck by gunfire. Nearby Interstate 15 and McCarran International Airport were briefly closed.
Before Sunday, the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history took place in June 2016, when a gunman opened fire at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, killing 49 people.
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