Minutes before the shooting, the shooter who entered a bank in Louisville sent a text message to his family saying, “I love you,” even though his roommate claimed he was unaware of his close friend’s deadly scheme.
The final loving message sent by Connor Sturgeon, 25, before he stormed into the Old National Bank on Monday with an assault rifle and started shooting at his coworkers, was made public by a lawyer for his family.
In the meantime, Sturgeon’s roommate has disclosed that he was unaware that his close friend was organizing the massacre, which resulted in five deaths and eight injuries, including one to a police officer who is still in critical condition.
Dallas Whalen, the roommate who is 24 years old, has been assisting with the investigation into the shooting, the attorney told the Daily Mail.
The attorney, who also represents the roommate, claimed that Dallas was equally unaware of and surprised by the situation as everyone else, adding that Whalen was unaware that Sturgeon had legally purchased the assault rifle six days prior.
“The family of (Sturgeon) is still collaborating with law enforcement. They don’t know very much, the attorney claimed.
“Police informed us that there are letters and other items. They are not here. We are still attempting to put that together since we have not seen them.
According to McCoy, “[the roommate] seemed to be on drugs and couldn’t believe anything was happening.” They reported it to the police after discovering a letter and a note he wrote.
Sturgeon’s parents said in a statement on Tuesday that although their son had been dealing with mental health issues, they never thought he would commit such a heinous act.
“There were never any warning signs or indications he was capable of this shocking act,” they claimed, adding that although Connor, like many of his contemporaries, had mental health issues that their family was actively addressing.
The family continued, “While we have many questions, we will continue to fully cooperate with law enforcement authorities and do everything we can to help everyone understand why and how this happened.”
Although Sturgeon’s family did not provide details about his mental health problems, a former classmate claimed that he had sustained numerous concussions while playing football in high school.
According to earlier reports, Sturgeon planned to “kill everyone at the bank,” where he was about to lose his job, and felt “suicidal” in a voicemail to a friend.
The deceased victims have been identified as senior vice president Tommy Elliott, 63; market executive Jim Tutt, 64; another senior vice president Joshua Barrick, 40; commercial loan specialist Juliana Farmer, 45; and executive administrative officer Deana Eckert, 57.
After having brain surgery, 26-year-old rookie police officer Nickolas Wilt, who was shot in the head, is still in critical but stable condition.
In the shootout where Sturgeon was killed, another police officer, Cory Galloway, suffered a graze wound to the shoulder.