A 34-year-old Iraq War veteran being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder snapped Wednesday and went on a shooting spree at Fort Hood. He killed three servicemen and wounded 16 others before shooting himself during a confrontation with a female MP. All of the shooting victims were members of the military.
According to ABC News, law enforcement authorities are investigating the possibility that an argument on or near the base may have led to the Fort Hood shooting. The alleged shooter was identified by law enforcement and military sources as 34-year-old Spc. Ivan Lopez.
Statements from General Milley on Ford Hood Shooting
Lt. Gen. Mark Milley held a press conference on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the shooting. Milley said the suspected shooter was assigned to the 13th Sustainment Command, based at Fort Hood, and he had been on active duty in Iraq for four months in 2011.
No motive has been determined, Milley said. He continued to say there was “no indication” of any connection to terrorism, but investigators had not ruled anything out.
“Obviously, we are digging deep into his background,” Milley went on. “He was undergoing behavioral health, psychiatric treatment for depression and anxiety and a variety of other psychological and psychiatric issues. He was not diagnosed, as of today, with PTSD, he was undergoing a diagnosis process to determine if he had PTSD. That is a lengthy process.”
Milley also said that the weapon used was a semi-automatic, .45 caliber Smith & Wesson handgun, and added that the pistol was not registered as required by base rules.
Neighbor comments
A neighbor of the Lopez family in Killeen, Xanderia Morris, said Lopez’s wife walked outside her home stunned when she heard about the shooting.
“She told me that she hasn’t talked to [her husband] since 3 o’clock and was hysterical,” Morris said. “She was shaking and crying.”
Morris said was especially surprised to hear Lopez was involved in the Fort Hood shooting, as he seemed normal, a devoted husband and father. “He was always smiling and waving whenever I saw him, so I didn’t think anything strange or unusual,” she said.
