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Ten people were killed and three more injured Saturday during a mass shooting at a Buffalo, New York supermarket that the FBI called a “case of racially motivated violent extremism.”

The gunman — identified by the Associated Press as 18-year-old Payton Gendron from Conklin, NY — was taken into custody by police after the shooting rampage at the Tops Friendly Market, where Gendron fired approximately 60 shots from a military-grade weapon.

Gendron was wearing military-style clothing, body armor and a helmet and was armed with a high-powered rifle. He had apparently traveled more than 200 miles to attack the supermarket, located in a predominantly Black neighborhood. Eleven out of the 13 people shot were Black, officials said, while the other two were white.

“The shooter was not from this community,” Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown said Saturday. “In fact, the shooter traveled hours from outside this community to perpetrate this crime on the people of Buffalo.”

BREAKING: BPD on scene of a mass shooting at the Tops in the 1200 block of Jefferson Avenue. Police say multiple people have been struck by gunfire. The shooter is in custody. Motorists and residents are urged to avoid the area.

— Buffalo Police Dept (@BPDAlerts) May 14, 2022

 

The Associated Press reports that the supermarket was located in a predominately black neighborhood outside downtown Buffalo. Three of the victims were shot and killed in the parking lot outside the store, the Buffalo News reported, before Gendron entered Tops and opened fire. After exiting the supermarket, he encountered officers.

When police arrived, Gendron first threatened to shoot himself. “He was standing there in his military gear with his weapon to his chin, looking like he was going to blow his head off,” witness Braedyn Kaphart told the Buffalo News. “We weren’t sure what was happening. As he continued to do that, he dropped to his knees still appearing as if he might shoot himself.” Police ultimately handcuffed Gendron and was being questioned by FBI as of Saturday night.

Gendron allegedly published a manifesto online that is ugly and unhinged, even for a suspected mass murderer. The document touts earlier racist rampage killings, and pushes the conspiracy theory that white Americans are being ‘replaced’ by immigrants and people of color. It’s a notion that’s been widely promoted on the far-right fringes, from the neo-Nazi marchers of Charlottesville to the Fox News broadcasts of Tucker Carlson.

“This was pure evil,” Erie County Sheriff John Garcia said at a press conference. “It was [a] straight-up racially motivated hate crime from somebody outside of our community … coming into our community and trying to inflict that evil upon us.”

The New York Times reports that Gendron pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and was ordered held without bail in a brief arraignment Saturday night. “I understand my charges,” he said. The next court proceeding is set for Thursday, May 19.

“Our hearts are with the community and all who have been impacted by this terrible tragedy,” NAACP President Derrick Johnson said in a statement. “Hate and racism have no place in America. We are shattered, extremely angered and praying for the victims’ families and loved ones.”

“I am closely monitoring the shooting at a grocery store in Buffalo,” New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a Buffalo native, tweeted Saturday. “We have offered assistance to local officials. If you are in Buffalo, please avoid the area and follow guidance from law enforcement and local officials.

Media allowed to record, but no live stream. Suspect is inside the courtroom as we await arraignment. @WKBW https://t.co/beFsjtJylJ pic.twitter.com/e9MyMXNdSW

— Eileen Buckley (@eileenwkbw) May 14, 2022

President Joe Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland were also briefed on the shooting, the New York Times reported, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were at the location of the shooting. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement that President Biden will “continue to receive updates throughout [Saturday] evening and tomorrow as further information develops. The president and the first lady are praying for those who have been lost and for their loved ones.”

Tops Friendly Markets said in a statement, “We are shocked and deeply saddened by this senseless act of violence and our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.”

According to Twitch, Gendron live-streamed the mass shooting on the platform — police admitted that he had a camera affixed to his helmet during the attack — and left behind a “manifesto” touting white supremacist conspiracy theories. Buffalo police did not confirm those reports, but said they were investigating to see if the attack was racially motivated. Twitch said in a statement that Gendron’s alleged “user” account has been suspended, and that they’re working to ensure the livestream isn’t rebroadcast.

“Twitch has a zero-tolerance policy against violence of any kind and works swiftly to respond to all incidents,” the company said.

The Buffalo shooting is the latest racially motivated mass killing inspired by white supremacy theories. In November 2018, 46-year-old Robert Gregory Bowers entered Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue, killing 11 people. In March 2019, Brenton Tarrant visited two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, gunning down 51 people and injuring 40 more. Like Gendron, Tarrant livestreamed the massacre and wrote a white supremacy-themed manifesto. The 74-page document was called The Great Replacement, a reference to the right-wing conspiracy theory that non-European populations are replacing white people. Five months later, a 21-year-old far-right gunman named Patrick Wood Crusius killed 23 people and injured 23 more at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas.