Chesapeake Police release names of Walmart shooting victims
One victim is a minor and therefore his identity has not been made public
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Chesapeake Police have released the names of the victims of Tuesday night’s mass shooting at the local Walmart.
A statement released by the city reads: “We are saddened to announce the names of those we lost on Tuesday evening at the shooting at Walmart on Sam’s Circle but hope that with this information we can honour their lives in our community.”
“The City of Chesapeake has always been known as the ‘City That Cares’ and now, more than ever, we know our City will show up and care for those who need it most,” it continues.
“Please join us in praying for the family and friends of these community members who we have lost: Lorenzo Gamble, Brian Pendleton, Kellie Pyle, Randall Blevins, and Tyneka Johnson.”
The sixth victim has not been named as he is a minor. He is described as a 16-year-old male resident of Chesapeake.
Andre Bing, a 31-year-old Walmart employee from Chesapeake, is accused of opening fire with a pistol inside the break room of the store on Sam’s Circle at around 10pm on Tuesday night.
The six victims were killed in the attack before Bing, an overnight team lead who had worked at the company for the past 12 years, allegedly shot and killed himself with his own gun, police said. His body was found in the store break room along with two of his alleged victims.
The motive for the attack remains unclear but surviving employees have revealed that the 31-year-old had “issues” with other staff members in the run-up to the mass shooting.
Walmart confirmed the identity of the gunman in a statement to The Independent on Wednesday.
“While details of the tragic incident in our Chesapeake, Virginia store are still emerging, authorities have confirmed multiple fatalities. We are focused on doing everything we can to support our associates and their families at this time. The alleged shooter has been identified as Andre Bing,” a company spokesperson said.
“We can confirm that he was a Walmart associate. Andre’s position with the company was overnight team lead and he’s been employed with us since 2010. We are thankful for the local first responders and will continue to work with local law enforcement as they continue their investigation.”
One witness who had worked at the store for just five days before Tuesday’s massacre claimed that it had already become clear within that short timeframe that Bing had “issues” with some of the other managers at the branch.
She told local network 10 On Your Side that she believed the shooting was planned and that the suspect was laughing at one point during the attack.
The shooting unfolded when 14 employees were sat in a meeting room waiting to go on shift for the night, she said, adding that he appeared to target other managers in the shooting.
Another employee Jessie Wilczewski told local station WAVY how the gunman appeared to spare her in the massacre.
She described how she hid under the table as gunfire erupted.
Bing spotted her and pointed his gun at her, she said. But, instead of opening fire, he told her to go home.
Another Walmart employee Briana Tyler told Good Morning America that the gunman was known as the one to “look out for”.
“There was always something going on with him just having an issue with someone but I never expected it would get to this level. He was the manager that everybody had something to say about,” she said.
Ms Tyler, who escaped the shooting unscathed, said that Bing didn’t say a word when he walked into the break room and started shooting.
“I looked up and my manager just opened the door and he just opened fire,” she said.
She added that she didn’t believe the suspect was aiming for particular individuals but just aimed at the first person “in his eyesight”.
“He just literally started shooting throughout the entire break room and I watched multiple people just drop down to the floor, where they were trying to duck for cover or they were hit,” she said.
“He didn’t say a word, he didn’t say anything at all... He just came around the corner and started shooting.
“The first person that was in his eyesight, he shot him down and the next thing you know, he just started rigging throughout the entire break room, but he did not say a word.”