Las Vegas shooter set off no alarm bells for local gun shop owner

Gun shop owner who sold the Las Vegas shooting suspect a shot gun.

(Image credit: Screenshot/Twitter/ABC)

published 2 October 2017

A gun shop owner who recently sold Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock a firearm said Monday that nothing about the Mesquite, Nevada, resident set off any alarm bells. "He wanted a firearm, he knew exactly what he was looking for in the shotgun that I sold him," the owner told ABC 13 News. "I went out and found it and I supplied it to him because I didn't see anything — nothing, again, stood out."

Paddock opened fire on people at an outdoor concert near the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas late Sunday, killing at least 58 people and injuring more than 500 in one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history. Paddock was eventually found dead on the 32nd floor of the hotel, apparently of a self-inflicted gunshot wound; SWAT team members breached the room and found at least 19 rifles inside, including two on tripods in the window, The New York Times reports.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.

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