Here's the latest on the Virginia television shooting:
- Virginia State police say the alleged gunman, Vester Lee Flanagan, is dead after shooting himself.
- Police say Flanagan was approached by police on Interstate 66 but refused to stop and sped away. Flanagan crashed his vehicle and was found with a gunshot wound to the head.
- The Roanoke Times reports that Flanagan abandoned his Ford Mustang at the Roanoke airport and may have rented a car which is the vehicle police stopped on the interstate.
Flanagan is wanted for shooting and killing a TV reporter and cameraman on live television Wednesday. The gunman recorded himself carrying out the killings and posted the video on Twitter and Facebook as he fled the scene.
Reporter Alison Parker with WDBJ had been interviewing an economic development official about local tourism as the shots rang out. She screamed, ran and could be heard saying "Oh my God," as she fell. Adam Ward's camera captured a fleeting image, including the face, of a man holding a handgun.
The suspect Vester Lee Flanagan II, 41, of Roanoke, appeared on air with WDBJ as Bryce Williams.
The network said someone who identified themselves as Bryce Williams called their newsroom multiple times over the last few weeks and then again Wednesday morning claiming he had shot two people.
ABC News said in the document, Flanagan wrote that a deadly shooting at a Charleston church sparked the shootings.
"Why did I do it? I put down a desposit for a gun on 6/19/15. The Church shooting in Charleston happened on 6/17/15... What sent me over the top was the church shooting. And my hollow point bullets have the victims' initials on them," the document said.
Flanagan also refers to Dylann Roof, Virginia Tech mass killer Seung Hui Cho and Columbine shooters Eric Harris and Dylann Klebold.
A Twitter account believed to be created by Flanagan twweeted about an EEOC report and also included tweets that said "Alison made racist comments" and "Adam went to hr on me after working with me one time!!!"
The Twitter and Facebook accounts were suspended.
The Roanoke Times reported Flanagan worked at WDBJ starting in 2012 after stints in San Francisco, Texas, North Carolina, Tallahassee and Savannah, Georgia. He was dismissed by WDBJ in 2013 and filed a lawsuit in 2014 accusing the station of discrimination. The case was dismissed by a judge.
Stay with Channel 2 Action News and wsbtv.com for updates on this developing story.
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