The gunman who allegedly killed six people at a Walmart store in Chesapeake, Virginia, before turning the gun on himself has now been identified as the store’s night manager.
Andre Bing, who is 31 years old and from Chesapeake, is accused of opening fire in the store’s break room on Sam’s Circle on Tuesday night, around 10 p.m.
Six Walmart employees were killed in the attack. It is still not clear why he did it, but those who are still alive say he had “issues” with other employees.
In a statement to The Independent on Wednesday morning, Walmart said that the gunman’s name was true. After a few hours, the police gave their official confirmation.
“Andre Bing has been named as the suspect in the shooting. “We know for sure that he worked for Walmart,” the Walmart statement said. “Andre’s job at the company was as the leader of the overnight team, and he’s been with us since 2010.”
Here’s what we know so far about the gunman:
Who is Andre Bing?
Wednesday afternoon, the police confirmed that Bing was the shooter and said he had a handgun and several magazines.
At a press conference a few hours earlier, the police confirmed that the gunman was a male store employee who was unhappy with his job. Chief Solesky said that officials would not say who he was at that time because his next of kin had not been told.
He said that it wasn’t clear right now whether the shooter “targeted” his victims or just shot people at random. Before Tuesday’s attack, it doesn’t seem like police were aware of him. A search of online records seems to show that he has never been arrested or charged with a crime.
After the shooting, the suspect’s home was searched with the help of a search warrant. Chief Solesky said that it showed that the public is not in danger.
Police said that the attacker used a pistol, but they didn’t say anything else about the murder weapon, like what brand and model it was or if it was bought legally and registered to the suspect.
The Shooting
Chesapeake Police Chief Mark Solesky stated at a press conference on Wednesday morning that the first 911 call about the shooting came in at 10.12 p.m. on Tuesday.
Kevin Harper, a store employee, claimed he had just left the break room when “one of the managers” entered and “just started spraying.”
He claimed in a Facebook Live video that he had a close call with the shooter as he was leaving the break room when gunfire erupted.
“I’d just left the break room when the manager came in, started capping people up in there, and started shooting, bro.” The manager walked in and began dumping, man. “He went in there as soon as I left the break room, man, that s*** was wild,” he says in the video.
Mr. Harper claims it was “one of the managers” who was killed, as well as other “associates.” “It’s strange,” he says, “but it was the manager, one of the managers.”
“He came in and just started spraying and s***ing people’s brains out and everything,” he adds. “Unfortunately, we lost a few of our associates; I’m not sure how many.”
Two minutes later, at 10:14, the first officers arrived on the scene. Two minutes later, at around 10:16, they went into the store.
Officers found the suspect dead from gunshot wounds he had given himself, and Chief Solesky said the scene was safe.
What Was His Motive?
One person who worked at Walmart and survived the attack said that the gunman had “issues” with some of their other coworkers and was “laughing” as he shot his victims.
According to an unnamed witness, the shooting occurred while 14 workers were preparing to begin their shift in a meeting room. She said that the group of workers were waiting to find out what their jobs would be for the shift when the suspect started shooting.
The employee, who had only been working at the store for five days, said she thought the shooting was planned because the person who did it had “issues” with other managers at the branch.
She said that he seemed to be shooting at other managers and was heard laughing at one point during the attack.
She said, “It didn’t even look real until you felt the gun go off.”
“I won’t go back to that store ever again.” “I can’t; I can’t even get out of my house.”
The Victims Of Walmart
Tyneka Johnson, a 21-year-old worker at the store, was the first person killed in the shooting. Her family put out a desperate plea to find her after the horror attack, and she was later found dead.
Late Wednesday night, Johnson’s family posted a heartbreaking message on Facebook, asking for help finding out what had happened to her.
“Help! We Must Locate My Little Cousin “She works at Walmart,” a worried family member wrote.
“Everyone wants to know if she’s okay.”This post is about how to help Tyneka Johnson and find her. No Questions. Just Help.”
After a few hours, the 21-year-old family friend posted a picture of him with heartbreak emojis.
Later on Wednesday, the police said that she had died and gave the names of the other people who had died.
Lorenzo Gamble, Brian Pendleton, Kellie Pyle, Randall Blevins, and a 16-year-old boy from Chesapeake who has not been named because he is a minor were also killed in the attack.
At least six other survivors were taken to local hospitals for more care, and as of Wednesday morning, three were still in the hospitals.
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