A 21-year-old suspect accused of gunning down 10 innocent people, including a police officer, has been charged with murder.
The man was arrested following the shooting inside a grocery store in Boulder, Colorado, at 2.30pm yesterday afternoon – the second mass shooting in the US in a week.
Today police confirmed the suspect is in a stable condition in hospital after being shot, and is expected to be moved to jail later today.
The people who died were aged between 20 and 65, and included hero police officer Eric Talley, who was first on the scene.
Police chief Maris Herold told a press conference this afternoon: “Our hearts go out to all the victims of the senseless act of violence.”
(Image: via REUTERS)
She added: “I feel numb, it’s heartbreaking to speak to victims and their families.”
She continued: “This is personal, this happened in my community.”
Herold paid tribute to the hero officer, saying that just two weeks ago Officer Talley’s family had been in her office to present his son with an award for doing CPR.
Boulder County district attorney Michael Dougherty said it is not known why the man opened fire.
Colorado governor Jared Polis said: ‘We simply can’t let this be accepted as anything close to a normal occurrence.”
The shooting at a King Soopers outlet in Boulder, about 28 milesnorthwest of Denver, drew hundreds of responding officers and sent shoppers and employees fleeing for cover.
The first officer on the scene, 51-year-old Eric Talley, was among those killed, a tearful Boulder Police Chief Maris Herold said at a news conference yesterday.
(Image: Getty Images)
An 11-year veteran of the force, Talley was the father of seven children and had recently been looking for a less dangerous job, according to a statement released by his father.
Ryan Borowski, 37, fled to safety when the shots rang out, saying: “It was pretty terrifying.”
Sarah Moonshadow, 42, was at the checkout line with her adult son, Nicholas, when the gunfire began.
“And I said, ‘Nicholas, get down.’ And Nicholas ducked. And we just started listening and there, just repetitive shots – and I just said, ‘Nicholas, run,'” she said.
Moonshadow said she tried to attend to a victim she saw lying on the pavement outside the store, but her son pulled her away, telling her, ‘We have to go.'”
(Image: BOULDER POLICE DEPARTMENT/HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)
She broke down in sobs recounting their ordeal, adding: “I couldn’t help anybody.”
Police said the accused gunman was taken to a hospital for treatment of injuries but did not explain how he was hurt.