At least five people are dead and nine were wounded in an active shooter situation at the Old National Bank in Louisville, Kentucky, in the downtown area of the city on April 10, 2023. Police said the suspect was a “lone gunman that did have a connection to the bank” and was a current or previous employee. An officer is among those injured, police said.
The suspect has been identified as 23-year-old Connor Sturgeon, a Louisville resident originally from Indiana. Sturgeon graduated from the University of Alabama in 2020, WVUA reports. Sturgeon began working at Old National Bank in Louisville as an intern while he was a student and then became a full-time employee after his graduation. Police said they could not confirm his employment status as of the morning of the shooting.
The victims killed in the shooting have been named as Joshua Barrick, 40; Thomas Elliott, 63; Juliana Farmer, 45; and James Tutt, 64. All four victims worked at the bank, police said. Three LMPD officers and six bank employees were injured in the shooting, according to police. Three of the victims, including Officer Nicholas “Nick” Tutt, remain in critical condition. Three others are hospitalized in non-critical condition and three were treated and released. Police said Tutt was shot in the head and underwent brain surgery, but is stable.
Another Louisville officer was grazed with a bullet in the side while exchanging gunfire with the suspect and a third suffered a minor elbow injury, police said. Those two officers shot and kileld Sturgeon, police said. Officers were at the scene three minutes after the calls of an active shooter, police said.
The Louisville Metropolitan Police Department confirmed in a tweet, “We are confirming reports of an active aggressor in the 300 block of East Main. Please stay out of the area. There are multiple casualties.”
In a follow-up thread of tweets, Louisville police said the calls for an “active aggressor” came in about 8:30 a.m. from the bank. Police said officers were “on scene in minutes,” and the “lone shooter is deceased.” Police said four victims were killed at the bank and at least six others were transported to the University of Louisville hospital.
According to police, “There is no longer a danger to the public,” but they are “asking the public to avoid the area.”
“It is clear from the officer’s response that they absolutely saved lives,” Deputy Chief Paul Humphrey said at a press conference. “This was a tragic event, but it was the heroic response of officers that made sure that no more people were more seriously injured than what happened.”
Police Scanner Audio Revealed Details of a Chaotic Scene
On police scanner audio obtained by Heavy through the archive and live-streaming site Broadcastify, a dispatcher said preliminarily that a caller said “eight to nine people were shot.” The dispatcher described the suspect as a white male, wearing dark-colored pants, on the first floor. Police have not officially confirmed those details. The dispatcher said the suspect was a 25-year-old white male who called a friend and left a voicemail saying he was going to “kill everyone at the bank” because he was feeling suicidal. People were hiding in the bank’s vault at one point, according to scanner audio.
BREAKING: Police confirm ‘multiple casualties’ following active shooter situation in downtown Louisville, Kentucky
The mother and brother of the shooter approached police, they said on the scanner.
Video emerged of the scene in downtown Louisville.
On the scanner at one point, police said the shooter was down, but that had not been confirmed. Officers said there were four people down in a conference room. A person was shot in the head, officers said, but one person in the conference room was still alive.
Shots then broke out on the scanner. “He’s still actively firing,” an officer said.
An Officer Was ‘Down Right in Front of the Bank,’ Police Said on the Scanner
GettyLaw enforcement officers respond to an active shooter near the Old National Bank building on April 10, 2023, in Louisville, Kentucky.
“Officer down right in front of the bank,” the dispatcher said, saying the officer was on the steps in front of the bank. Preliminary scanner reports can sometimes conflict or be wrong in fast-moving active shooter situations. Officers declared a “code three” and said the wounded officer was being taken to the hospital.
GettyCrime scene tape cordons off a street as law enforcement officers respond to an active shooter near the Old National Bank building on April 10, 2023, in Louisville, Kentucky.
“The shooter has an angle on the officer,” police said on the scanner at one point as they arrived at the bank downtown. Officers spoke about concern that they would be ambushed.
A person was also shot in the leg in a first-floor bathroom, according to the scanner audio.
Louisville Police Wrote That They Were Aware of a ‘Reported Incident’ as Video Showed the Response to the Scene
BREAKING: Police responding to active shooter in downtown Louisville, Kentucky; everyone asked to avoid the area
Louisville police wrote on Twitter, “ALERT: We are aware of the reported incident in the 300 block of East Main St. in #Louisville. Once information becomes available we will advise. Please stay away from this area. #LMPD #LouMedia.”
ALERT: We are aware of the reported incident in the 300 block of East Main St. in #Louisville. Once information becomes available we will advise. Please stay away from this area. #LMPD #LouMedia
On the scanner, officers discussed ways to get to the wounded officer. The officer’s condition was not yet clear.
The suspect name and motive were also not yet clear.
“Be careful,” an officer advised other officers on the scanner.
The Mayor Said ‘There Is an Active Police Situation Downtown’
We are confirming reports of an active aggressor in the 300 block of East Main. Please stay out of the area. There are multiple casualties.
The mayor of Louisville, Craig Greenberg, wrote on Twitter on April 10, 2023, “There is an active police situation downtown. Please avoid the area around Slugger Field until further notice. We will provide information as soon as possible.”
GettyLaw enforcement officers respond to an active shooter near the Old National Bank building on April 10, 2023, in Louisville, Kentucky.
“Get an EMS right now,” an officer said on the scanner. He said that one victim was shot in the head and also said there were multiple levels to the bank.
SWAT officers were responding to the scene, according to the scanner. Officers said in the initial audio that they weren’t sure where the shooter was. At another point, they said the shooter might be down and they were searching the building.
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