Texas authorities have no solid information on the shooter who opened fire at a packed college party just after midnight Sunday, killing two people and injuring 16 others before vanishing into the fleeing crowd.
Attendees of the Greenville area gathering – an unsanctioned, off-campus celebration held during Texas A&M at Commerce’s homecoming weekend – have not been cooperating with investigators, Hunt County Sheriff Randy Meeks said.
“It appalls me that, as many folks that were there, [they] have not been able to give us a better description of this shooter,” he told reporters during anews conference.
The shooting happened at about 12: 05 am at an event space called the Party Venue, a barnlike structure along a stretch of Highway 380 northeast of Dallas. About 750 teenagers to 20 – somethings were crowded inside and around the venue, some of them in Halloween costumes.
When the shots rang out, law enforcement was already on the scene: A Hunt County Sheriff’s Office sergeant and deputy had arrived after getting complaints of cars illegally parked along the shoulder of the highway. They were outside the front of the building, Meeks said, questioning a party goer who appeared to be intoxicated to the point of incapacitation.
Gunfire erupted in the back of the building, away from the off-duty officer working the event. Then came pandemonium as hundreds of people tried frantically to escape.
“They were breaking the glass of the windows trying to get out the building,” Meeks said. “My deputies said there was four abreast trying to get out the front door.”
In the chaos, the shooter – believed to be a lone man – was able to get away.
Two unidentified men were found dead on the scene. Meeks credited law enforcement with potentially saving the lives of other shooting victims, noting that one deputy loaded a man with life-threatening injuries into his patrol vehicle and drove him to a hospital while another triaged other victims. A total of 16 people were hurt or killed, with 12 suffering gunshot wounds.
The investigation has been somewhat complicated by the Halloween costumes worn by revelers. Authorities initially reported that a rifle was used in the shooting, only to say later that the weapon was a handgun. Rifle rounds found on the floor turned out to be fake – potentially part of someone’s get-up.
Meeks said investigators have theorized that the shooter may have been targeting a specific person, one of the two men who were killed. But the investigation, which is being assisted by the Texas Rangers and the FBI, is in its early stages and has been hampered by the reluctance of witnesses.
The sheriff urged people to come forward with information about the shooter.
“We need to get him off the street as soon as possible,” he said. “And we have very, very little to go on right now.”
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