As Sunday night led to Monday morning, the attack at the Mandalay Bay Casino in Las Vegas became the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history with 59 killed and 527 wounded by a gunman with Florida connections.
- Motive behind shooting unknown, authorities say
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The gunman was Stephen Craig Paddock, a successful real estate investor and a big gambler, but his family says they are just as confused as authorities are and have no clue why the 64-year-old man opened fire on that crowd.
Authorities say that at around 1 a.m., EST, Paddock shoot from the 32 floor in a suite at the Mandalay Bay Casino into a crowd of 22,000 people at a concert headlined by Jason Aldean. Among the dead were two police officers.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said in one of the many press conferences on Monday that Paddock acted alone.
Special FBI agent Aaron Rouse said that there is no connection between Paddock and any international terrorist organization, though the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria tried to claim responsibility for the shooting.
Authorities had nothing to say about Paddock’s motive, with Lombardo saying when ask, "I can’t get into the mind of a psychopath at this point."
The gunman's brother also has no idea why it happened.
“Absolutely no way I can even conceive that my brother would shoot a bunch of people he doesn’t even know,” said 57-year-old Eric Paddock. “Something incredibly wrong happened to my brother, and then this happened.”
Late on Oct. 3 Eric Paddock's family issued the following statement:
“There are no words to describe the sadness we feel for those who lost their lives in this tragic event. Please know that you are in our prayers and that our hearts are heavy for the families who have been left heartbroken and without answers. Like everyone, we are learning the details about what happened as they come out. There is just no way to express our shock, devastation and sorrow for all the victims, and their families' unimaginable loss.”
Authorities say Paddock was a retired accountant with no prior criminal record and made most of his money through real estate.
Paddock lived in his home in a 55 and up community in Mesquite, Nev., with his girlfriend Marilou Danley and those who knew him say he was a loner, but they never suspected he would do something like this.
Investigators found 23 firearms in Paddock’s hotel room and 19 more in his home, which they believe were purchased legally and a Mesquite gun store said it sold a gun to Paddock and he never gave any indication or reason to believe he was unstable or unfit.
Neighbors in Melbourne are still surprised that the gunman used to live in their community.
Paddock last lived in Melbourne in 2015 with his girlfriend Danley.
But, they say he only came back on weekends and only about five times in the last couple of years.
"He never threatened," said neighbor Don Judy. "He never appeared threatening."
"He came over and introduced himself, and said hey, 'I'm going to be living next door. But we aren't here all the time. We live mostly in Las Vegas,'" recalled Sharon Judy.
FBI agents stopped by the home Monday morning and interviewed neighbors.
The current homeowner says he only dealt with Paddock over the phone, mainly through the realtor.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.