Stephen Paddock sent a series of emails suggesting that he was part of a group selling “a huge selection” of weapons in the Las Vegas area.
by Rachel Blevins, guest writer
New details have been released from the FBI’s investigation into the Las Vegas Shooting, and the information from suspect Stephen Paddock’s email account in the months leading up to the shooting is giving new insight into why he may have been hoarding two dozen guns in his hotel room.
The deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history was blamed on one man within hours, and the FBI has consistently claimed that Paddock was a “lone wolf” shooter who intentionally transported an arsenal of guns, ammunition, and supplies to his hotel room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel, and then unleashed barrage of gunfire from the bedroom window that killed 58 people and injured more than 500.
While the surveillance footage from Paddock’s stay at the hotel has yet to be released, the newly unsealed court documents are finally giving some insight into his conduct in the months leading up to the shooting on Oct. 1.
An email exchange from [email protected], a Microsoft account FBI agents claimed was used by Paddock, was included in an affidavit reported by NPR.
The date was July 6, 2017 — about three months before the shooting—and while the FBI noted that it is unclear who is behind [email protected], the email account Paddock was contacting, the information included is significant.
“… sent an email to [email protected] which read, ‘try an ar before u buy. we have huge selection. located in the las vegas area,’ Later the day, an email was received back from [email protected] to that read, ‘we have a wide variety of optics and ammunition to try.’
“And lastly,
