Advertisement

10 killed in racially motivated shooting in Buffalo

STORY: An 18-year-old white male has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder for a mass shooting at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, in what authorities called an act of "racially motivated violent extremism."

Authorities say at least 10 people have been reported dead from the shooting, which took place in a predominantly Black neighborhood in Buffalo on Saturday afternoon.

Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said the suspect was armed with an assault-style rifle and body armor when he opened fire in the parking lot, while livestreaming the attack on Twitch:

1:50 "He worked his way back to the front of the store. Buffalo police immediately responded and engaged the suspect in the vestibule of the store and at that point the suspect put the gun to his own neck. Buffalo Police personnel and two patrol officers talked the suspect into dropping the gun. He dropped the gun, took off some of his tactical gear and surrendered at that point."

Officials said eleven of the 13 people struck by gunfire were Black, and that the attack would be investigated both as a hate crime and an act of "racially motivated violent extremism" under federal law.

Twitch said in a statement that it removed the livestream of the attack less than two minutes after it started and was working to ensure no other accounts reposted the content.

Speaking at the suspect's arraignment on Saturday, New York Governor Kathy Hochul said such livestreams were responsible for a "feeding frenzy" of violent extremist ideology. She also pledged to introduce previously planned gun control legislation on Tuesday to address "loopholes" in state laws.

"To see the sense of security shattered by an individual, a White Supremacist who has engaged in an act of terrorism and will be prosecuted as such... It strikes us in our very hearts to know that there is such evil that lurks out there."

Documents attributed to the suspect have been circulating online, including a to-do list for the attack, as well as a 180-page manifesto alleging that minorities are replacing white people worldwide.

A district attorney spokesperson declined to comment on the documents while the FBI could not immediately be reached for comment.

If convicted, the suspect faces a maximum penalty of life in prison without parole.