Police release bodycam footage of Louisville bank shooting

Bodycam footage released by police has shown the moment a gunman opened fire at a Louisville bank – killing five colleagues.

Connor Sturgeon, 23, shot dead the Old National Bank at the time of Monday’s attack in the Kentucky city.

He livestreamed the attack on social media before he was killed by police – with bodycam video footage released by officers on Tuesday.

Louisville Metro Police Department Deputy Chief Paul Humphrey walked reporters through edited footage and still photos.

One still image from surveillance video showed the shooter holding a rifle inside the building, surrounded by broken glass. Police said he set up an ambush position to attack officers as they arrived.

Police chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel said they “unflinchingly” engaged Sturgeon to stop his rampage.

“The act of heroism can’t be overstated on yesterday. They did what they were called to do. They answered that call to protect and serve,” she told reporters.

Officer Nickolas Wilt – who finished training less than two weeks ago – is critical but stable after being shot in the head, according to hospital officials.

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Ms Gwinn-Villaroel said the AR-15 style assault rifle used in the slaughter was legally purchased at a local dealership on 4 April.

Louisville mayor Craig Greenberg criticised state laws that mean the weapon will be sold at auction.

“The assault rifle that was used to murder five of our neighbours and shoot at police officers will one day be auctioned off,” he said.

“Think about that. That murder weapon will be back on the streets one day under Kentucky’s current law.”

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Police chief Ms Gwinn-Villaroel did not give an indication of the gunman’s motive, but said they had never dealt with him before.

Those killed have been named as Joshua Barrick, 40, Deana Eckert, 57, Thomas Elliot, 63, Juliana Farmer, 45, and James Tutt, 64.

Eight more people were injured and four were still in hospital on Tuesday.

Dr Jason Smith, chief medical officer at University of Louisville Health, was emotional when he spoke to the media and said he was “weary” of having to treat so many gun victims.

“There’s only so many times you can walk into a room and tell someone they’re not coming home tomorrow,” he said.

“It just breaks your heart when you hear someone screaming ‘mommy’ or ‘daddy.'”

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Kentucky governor Andy Beshear said one of the dead, Thomas Elliot, was a close friend and had helped him “build him law career, helped me become governor, gave me advice on being a good dad”.

“He’s one of the people I talked to most in the world, and very rarely were we talking about my job. He was an incredible friend,” he said.

The Louisville incident came two weeks after three children and three staff were killed in a mass shooting at a school in Nashville, Tennessee.

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