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Gunman who killed six people and wounded 22 in West Texas named

Sep 3, 2019

ODESSA, Texas – The man who gunned down nearly thirty people, killing 6 of them on Saturday, was a 36-year old man whose motive for his shooting spree remains a mystery.

“The active shooter has been identified as Seth Aaron Ator, 36, of Odessa,” local police posted on their Facebook page.

“There are no definitive answers as to motive or reasons at this point, but we are fairly certain that the subject did act alone,” Odessa Police Chief Michael Gerke told a packed news conference on Sunday.

The chief confirmed the death toll at seven, which included the shooter. The toll rose after the deaths of two people who had been injured.

The number of wounded has been revised rio 22, and these include a 17-month-old girl, Anderson Davis, who was shot in the face.

Col. Steve McCraw, head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said Sunday Ator, an Ector County man has a criminal record.

Texas Department of Public Safety records indicate that Ator was arrested in Waco in McLennan County, Texas, in 2001 on charges of criminal trespass and evading arrest.

“The loss of lives is certainly tragic, and we’re concerned about these active shooter situations across the state, ” McCraw said. “As the governor indicated today, one is too many, and we have had six in over the last two years.”

“It’s a combination of things, from the public understanding what the threat indicators are and being willing to report that in a timely manner, and law enforcement following up in a timely manner, and to tie disparate data bases together so we can see the underlying threat patterns,” he said.

A candlelight vigil was held on Sunday night in Odessa for the victims.

Saturday’s saga began at around 3:13pm on Saturday when Texas Department of Public Safety troopers attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a car being driven by Ator on Interstate 20 westbound near mile marker 131. Prior to the vehicle coming to a complete stop, Ator allegedly pointed a rifle toward the rear window of his car and fired several shots toward the patrol unit. The patrol unit was occupied by two troopers, and one was hit by the gunfire. Ator fled the scene and continued shooting innocent people, including a Midland police officer and an Odessa police officer. In all six people died, before Ator was shot and killed, taking the toll to 7.

The trooper is in serious but stable condition, and the two other officers are in stable condition at a local hospital, together with 19 other people. A total twenty-two were wounded..

For Texas, it was the second mass shooting in the state in August. On the first Saturday of August (August 3), 22 people were killed at an El Paso Walmart store.

Now on the last Saturday of August a second shooting tragedy has hit the state.

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