DHAKA: A “lone wolf” gunman carried out the America’s deadliest mass shooting in a meticulously planned attack at a festival crowd of 22,000, reports The Telegraph.

Stephen Paddock, 64, killed at least 59 people and injured a further 527 when he fired on concert-goers from the vantage point of a 32nd-floor hotel room in Las Vegas.

Armed with as many as 20 weapons, including automatic and semi-automatic rifles, Paddock opened fire at 10.08pm on Sunday (5.08am UK time) in a shooting spree that lasted between five and 10 minutes.

As police prepared to storm his hotel room, Paddock committed suicide by turning one of the guns on himself.

Donald Trump described the massacre as an “act of pure evil” but sidestepped calls for tighter gun laws. His spokesman later said Trump stood by the Second Amendment which guarantees the “right to bear arms”.

Isil repeatedly said it was responsible for the attack, claiming that Paddock had converted to Islam in the past few months. The terrorist group described him as a “martyr”, who was using the Arabic name Abu Abdul al-Bar al-Amriki. Both police and the FBI said they were still seeking a motive and added that Paddock was not known to be connected to any terrorist group.

Police said Paddock had checked into the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino Hotel on Thursday (September 28) and then waited until the final act of the last night of a three-day country music festival when crowds were at their peak.

BDST: 1051 HRS, OCT 3, 2017
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