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There were reports of an active shooter and a vehicle explosion in Bellevue, Nebraska, near a Sonic restaurant. The reports broke out in the evening of November 21. However, a person is now in custody by one report.
The accused mass shooter has now been named as Roberto Carlos Silva, a man who was arrested recently after being accused of identity theft for using someone’s app to order food at the Sonic. Learn more about Silva here.
“UPDATE ON BELLEVUE SHOOTING: Bellevue police confirm one person IS in custody and that they are NOT actively searching for anybody right now. #bellevue #shooting #breaking @KETV,” wrote Emily Tencer, a reporter for KETV, on Twitter.
“Currently in Bellevue, police are saying there is an active shooter. We’re waiting on confirmation of injuries at this time. We’ve heard the call was made in reference to the sonic at 1307 Cornhusker Rd.,” reported Jessika Eidson, digital editor and reporter for KMTV, earlier in the night.
Several people were injured, according to Omaha.com, which didn’t provide a specific number. However, on November 22, police said in a news conference that two people are dead and two are injured at the hospital.
“A large police presence for an active investigation near 15th and Cornhusker. AVOID THE AREA. MORE UPDATES TO FOLLOW,” was all Bellevue police said in a tweet.
WOWT shared live video from the scene. “There are multiple authorities, police, different jurisdictions reporting here,” the station’s journalist, Alex McLoon, reported. Omaha police are helping “respond to an active shooter situation,” he said. Officials were knocking through a drive-thru window at one point in that video. “Authorities have been going up to this drive-thru window, periodically knocking on the door,” he said. Witnesses noticed a hand through the window.
Here’s what you need to know:
Video Captured the Explosion
A witness just sent me this video.
It captures a car fire and explosion in the Sonic Drive Thru.
This is the Sonic in Bellevue just off Cornhusker.
Video emerged capturing the explosion. Emily Tencer, a journalist with KETV, wrote on Twitter with the above video, “A witness just sent me this video. It captures a car fire and explosion in the Sonic Drive Thru. This is the Sonic in Bellevue just off Cornhusker.”
The videos showed a vehicle on fire at that location, possibly a U-Haul.
KETV reported that at least one person was in critical condition. Bellevue is a community of about 50,000 people.
A man told McLoon he heard multiple “pops” as he walked toward the restaurant. His first thought was gunshots. “It wasn’t real loud,” he said. “It was like pop, pop, pop.” The man went inside and sat down at a table and then he saw a fire outside the window.
Six Ambulances Were Called to the Still Active Scene
According to KETV, a vehicle was on fire and a SWAT team gathering at the Sonic. The reports started around 9:30 p.m., but a lot of details are still unclear.
The television station reported seeing six ambulances at the scene.
The reports come the two days after a man opened fire in a popular shopping mall in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, injuring eight people. That man remain unidentified and at large. In that instance, police said the shooting was not random and stemmed from an altercation, although they weren’t more specific about the nature of it.
There was a massive law enforcement response to the scene. According to Omaha.com, at least 20 law enforcement vehicles responded to the scene.
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