Suspect, nine victims killed in shooting in Dayton, including sister

Aug. 4 (UPI) -- Ten people are dead, including the 24-year-old suspect by police, and another 27 were injured near a downtown bar in Dayton, Ohio, early Sunday -- the second mass slaying within 24 hours in the United States.

Connor Betts, a white male from Bellbrook, a suburb of Dayton, was identified as the shooter by Lt. Colonel Matt Carper, Dayton's assistant chief of police, during a news conference Sunday afternoon. His sister, Megan Betts, 22, was found dead and her boyfriend was injured near the bar, NBC News reported. The other victims, who ranged from 25 to 57, including three women.

Betts attended Sinclair Community College, spokesperson at the Dayton school told The Dayton Daily News. He started in the summer of 2017 and wasn't enrolled this summer.

The shooter wore body armor as he attempted to enter the Ned Peppers Bar on East Fifth Street in Dayton's Oregon District around 1 a.m., police said. He used a .223-caliber high-capacity magazine rifle and was wearing something over his face, the Dayton Daily News reported.

"If the Dayton police had not gotten to the shooter in under a minute, hundreds of people in the Oregon District would be dead today," Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley said at a morning news conference. "This is the 250th mass shooting in America. It's sad that it's in the city of Dayton."

Thirteen hours earlier, 20 people died and 26 were injured at a Walmart Supercenter in El Paso, Texas.

Dayton police first received notification of the shooting at 1:22 a.m.

"We had officers in the immediate vicinity when this shooting began and were able to respond and put an end to it quickly," Dayton police Lt. Col. Matt Carper posted on Twitter.

The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are also on the scene investigating.

"We don't have the answer as to "why" and probably won't for some time," Police Chief Richard Biel said in a Twitter post. "This will be long and tedious investigation."

"Happened right in front of the patio where I was sitting in front of Neds," James William described on Facebook in a public post. "He tried to go into the bar but did not make it through the door. Someone took the gun from him and he got shot and is dead."

Graham Hunter, 24, of Dayton arrived in the bar area with four friends as the shooting ended.

"Everyone was panicking and running around," Hunter told CNN. "After the shooter was dead, everyone was just crying and stuff," and he saw "bodies all over the place," including the shooter.

Hunter described the entertainment district as a "nice spot" and where everyone goes to hang out."

"Happened right in front of the patio where I was sitting in front of Neds," James William described on Facebook in a public post. "He tried to go into the bar but did not make it through the door. Someone took the gun from him and he got shot and is dead."

The Oregon District reopen Sunday afternoon though the bar will remain closed.

"We are shaken and confused as to why this occurred in our safe entertainment district located in downtown Dayton," Ned Peppers, a "traditional western-ish themed bar," posted on its website. "We have police regularly staffed next to our business who engaged the shooter and neutralized the threat.

"Dayton Police could not have done a better job responding to this senseless act of violence."

The Convention Center is being used for family members and friends disconnected from their family members and friends during the shooting.

The mayor said 15 of the 27 treated patients at various hospitals have been released

Miami Valley Hospital, which is near the shooting scene, received 14 patients, communications department Terrea Little told CNN. Two others across its health system were treated, Dr. Randy Marriott said.

Kettering Health Network, which operates several Dayton area hospitals, including Kettering Medical Center and Grandview Medical Center, treated around a dozen patients, many with gunshot wounds to the "lower extremities," Elizabeth Long, a spokeswoman, told CNN.

Gov. Mike DeWine posted on Twitter that his wife "Fran and I are absolutely heartbroken over the horrible attack that occurred this morning in Dayton. We join those across Ohio and this country in offering our prayers to victims and their families."

He said the Ohio Department of Public Safety and the Ohio State Highway Patrol offered assistance to local law enforcement "as they investigate this heinous act.

DeWine spoke with President Donald Trump on Sunday morning. They separately ordered flags at half staff in all Ohio state buildings, federal government buildings, military installations and vessels, and facilities abroad through Thursday at sunset. Trump's order simultaneously honors the victims of the shooting in El Paso.

Trump referenced both tragedies in Twitter posts.

"God bless the people of El Paso Texas. God bless the people of Dayton, Ohio."

Minutes earlier he posted: "The FBI, local and state law enforcement are working together in El Paso and in Dayton, Ohio Information is rapidly being accumulated in Dayton. Much has already be learned in El Paso. Law enforcement was very rapid in both instances. Updates will be given throughout the day!"

On May 27, several tornadoes touched down in Dayton and surrounding communities, damaging buildings and causing one death.

"Our community has shown incredible resilience in the face of these tragedies, and I'm sure Dayton will rise to this challenge as we always have," he mayor said in a statement posted on Facebook.

"We have suffered two tragedies in Dayton this year, but one was avoidable. This same tragedy has been inflicted on our nation 250 times this year alone. When is enough, enough?"

Besides the Betts siblings, the fatalities were identified as Lois L. Oglesby, 27; Saeed Saleh, 38; Derrick R. Fudge, 57; Logan M. Turner, 30, Nicholas P. Cumer, 25; Thomas J. McNichols, 25; Beatrice N. Warren-Curtis, 36; and Monica E. Brickhouse, 39.