Louisville shooter Connor Sturgeon started his massacre on Monday at the Old National Bank by shooting dead a woman who had just greeted him at the reception. He then went on to kill another four of his former colleagues before he halted the gunfire and waited for police to arrive as he wanted to shoot everyone, according to his Instagram livestream.
The video that captured the terrifying occurrence has been removed from social media, but a Louisville municipal official told CNN what it contained. Louisville Metro Police Department showed images of the gunman, 25-year-old Connor Sturgeon, both inside the hallway and then in the lobby of the bank.
Planned Attack
The municipal officer said that after Sturgeon stormed the bank, he was greeted by a woman who said, “Good morning.” In less than a minute, Sturgeon took out his gun and shot the woman in the back. He then started shooting at others inside the bank before pausing as he waited for the cops to arrive.
Sturgeon was apparently suicidal and facing termination from Old National Bank when he carried out the shooting spree that left five people dead and eight others injured.
According to the now-deleted Instagram livestream, Sturgeon after being greeted tells the woman in the video “You need to get out of here.” He then tries to shoot her in the back as she turns to flee.
According to the official speaking to CNN, Sturgeon’s first attempt to shoot the woman is unsuccessful because the safety on his rifle was still engaged and it wasn’t not yet loaded.
Sturgeon took off the safety and loaded the rifle before aiming at the woman who had just greeted him and shooting her in the back. The woman is still in the hospital and in critical condition.
The 25-year-old bank employee reportedly then kept shooting at his colleagues on the first floor as they desperately tried to escape.
According to the person who described the footage, Sturgeon stopped the shooting after approximately a minute and went to the lobby, and perhaps started waiting for the police to arrive.
Encounter With Death
The first officers arrived at the bank in downtown Louisville less than two minutes later and engaged Sturgeon, who was killed during the exchange of fire. Louisville police have released chilling body camera footage of the moment that shows officers arriving, being ambushed and then shooting dead Sturgeon.
Sturgeon started his rampage on the first floor of the bank. Over the span of six minutes, the bodycam footage shows cops pulling up to Old National Bank while bullets reverberate through the building, and then charging at the doors.
The footage begins with cops responding to the scene. Officer Nickolas Wilt, 26, is seen driving to the site at 8:40 in the morning, on his tenth day on duty.
His training officer, Officer Cory “CJ” Galloway, is sitting in the backseat.
Galloway leads the way, and the two pause behind a wall to assess the situation. At 8:41 am, Galloway begins to ascend the stairs.
Galloway radios to headquarters: “We are making entry to the east side.”
Wilt is seen standing behind him. Then his camera stops. Wilt was shot in the head and had brain surgery on Monday night. His situation is still critical.
Galloway’s body camera keeps recording as he hears gunshots, turns around, and sees Wilt on the bank steps.
Galloway stumbles to the ground, appears to roll, and then scampers down the stairs behind a wall. A bystander across the street records the attack and Galloway’s fall.
“God damn it!” Galway yells in pain. Sirens can be heard, signaling the arrival of more emergency personnel.
Galloway replies, ” The shooter has an angle on that officer, we need to get up there.”
“We need to get up there. I don’t know where he is, the glass is blocking him.”
Galloway looks for Sturgeon, trying to get a clear view of him by peering under a shrub. Soon, a second cop approaches Galloway from behind. Galloway informs him that the shooter is aiming directly at the officer through these windows.
Galloway says they “need to plate somehow, to be able to get there and pull him down off those stairs” – an apparent reference to donning body armor.
Another round of gunfire is soon heard. At 8:44 am, Galloway shouts: “I think I got him down. I think he’s down! Suspect down, get the officer.”
“Suspect down, get the officer,” he then commands as he ascends the stairs. Sturgeon is slumped on the floor with his left hand across his stomach and his weapon resting next to him when Galloway enters the bank through the shards of glass on the floor.
Police then gave their final approval that the building was secure at 8:45 a.m., around 15 minutes after the bloodshed started.
Louisville police have yet not identified who actually shot dead Sturgeon. Five people were killed in the shooting, who have been identified as Tommy Elliott, 63; Jim Tutt, 64; Joshua Barrick, 40; Juliana Farmer, 45; and Deanna Eckert, 57.
