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Las Vegas shooting: Authorities say attack was premeditated, search for motive continues

Click to play video: 'Photos of Las Vegas shooter’s hotel room leaked are real: police'
Photos of Las Vegas shooter’s hotel room leaked are real: police
Las Vegas police confirmed that the photos of Stephen Paddock's hotel room leaked to media are real and that there were three cameras the shooter setup to detect arrival of police – Oct 3, 2017

LATEST UPDATES:
Motive remains unknown — but officials say the attack was premeditated
– 4 Canadians confirmed killed, others injured
– Police find 47 firearms connected to the shooting in total

– Many victims remain in critical condition-


Authorities said the mass shooting of around 600 people, which killed 59, was premeditated and preplanned.

But Las Vegas Sheriff Joe Lombardo said the quick police response, along with the help of the security team at the Mandalay Bay hotel, is the reason more lives weren’t lost.

At an evening news conference, Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said the first minute when police were made aware of the shooting was at 10:08 p.m., and that it ceased at 10:18 p.m.

WATCH: Las Vegas shooting lasted for 9 to 11 minutes after police alerted

Click to play video: 'Las Vegas shooting lasted for 9 to 11 minutes after police alerted'
Las Vegas shooting lasted for 9 to 11 minutes after police alerted

Police found 23 weapons from the hotel room where Stephen Paddock staged his attack, and another 19 firearms from his home in Mesquite, Nev. Several thousand rounds of ammunition, explosives and electronics were also seized from the home.

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At a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Lombardo said an addition five handguns and two shotguns were found at another property in Reno, which Paddock owned.

In total, 47 firearms have been recovered in connection with the shooting, Jill Snyder, the special agent in charge of the San Francisco Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said at another news conference on Tuesday night.

The firearms were purchased in Nevada, California, Utah and Texas.

WARNING: Some viewers may find these videos disturbing.

Snyder also said that 12 “bump stocks,” devices that are intended to make semi-automatic weapons fire automatically, were identified on the firearms in Paddock’s hotel room.

However, Snyder said the devices don’t actually alter firearms to shoot automatically — and that means they’re legal under federal laws.

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The ATF is still trying to determine which firearms were actually used in the shootings, she added.

The gunman also used a device called a bump stock which makes non-automatic weapons fire automatically. While the sheriff couldn’t say if the guns had been modified, he said the weapons were being sent to the FBI crime lab.

WATCH: Las Vegas police release compilation of bodycam during mass shooting

Click to play video: 'Las Vegas police release bodycam video compilation during shooting'
Las Vegas police release bodycam video compilation during shooting

Also at the evening news conference, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police (LVMPD) released bodycam footage that was taken during the shooting.

One video showed officers standing by a wall and trying to determine where bullets were coming from.

Another showed officers hunkered next to a patrol vehicle when one of them was shot.

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WATCH: FBI, ATF examining modified guns used in Las Vegas shooting 

Click to play video: 'FBI, ATF examining modified guns used in Las Vegas shooting'
FBI, ATF examining modified guns used in Las Vegas shooting

Sherifff Lombardo said the fact that his officers were able to identify the location of the shooter so quickly was instrumental in ending the gunfire.

“We would not have engaged this individual in the time that we did – if it weren’t for the Mandalay security,” Lombardo said gratefully.

“I’m actually very proud of our people.”

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Authorities also say the gunman in the Las Vegas shooting put a camera in a food service cart outside his hotel room.

Lombardo said that he believes Paddock had set up cameras inside and outside his room to see if anyone was coming to take him into custody. He did not release further details.

Police and other officials said they are still looking into why Paddock opened fire from a sniper’s nest perched 32 floors above the Las Vegas Strip and rained gunfire down onto a concert. Lombardo said he hopes to know more about his motive within 48 hours.

The 64-year-old man opened fire on 22,000 people Sunday night just after 10 p.m. local time as country music star Jason Aldean was performing at the end of the three-day Route 91 Harvest festival.

READ MORE: Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock had interest in guns, video poker and real estate

Paddock was not known to have served in the military, or to have suffered from a history of mental illness or to have registered any inkling of social disaffection, political discontent or radical views on social media.

On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump described Paddock as a “sick man.”

“He was a sick man, a demented man. A lot of problems I guess and we are looking into him very, very seriously but we’re dealing with a very, very sick individual,” Trump said before boarding Marine One.

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WATCH: President Trump says Las Vegas shooter was a ‘sick man’
Click to play video: 'President Trump says Las Vegas shooter was a ‘sick man’'
President Trump says Las Vegas shooter was a ‘sick man’

The president praised Las Vegas police, calling their response a “miracle.”

“Look we have a tragedy. What happened in Las Vegas is in many ways a miracle. The police department has done such an incredible job,” Trump said. “We’ll be talking about gun laws as time goes by. But I do have to say how quickly the police department was able to get in was really very much of a miracle. They’ve done an amazing job.”

All but three of the victims have been identified. Global News confirmed four Canadians were among those killed in Sunday’s rampage.

Jordan McIldoon, 23, a construction worker from Maple Ridge, B.C., was identified as one of the victims early Monday morning. Jessica Klymchuk, an educational assistant, librarian and bus driver from Alberta, was identified Monday afternoon.

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Las Vegas bartender stayed with dying B.C. man

On Tuesday, Calla Medig, of Jasper was confirmed as the third Canadian victim. Alberta Premier Rachel Notley expressed her condolences to both victims from the province.

Friends and family confirmed to Global News on Tuesday that Tara Roe, 34, from Okotoks, Alta., was killed in the Las Vegas rampage on Sunday.

Officials said a GoFundMe campaign dedicated to the victims has raised over $3.7 million in just over one day. Another $3.6 million was donated privately. While the details of how the funds will be distributed are still in the works, the money will be dedicated to helping with medical costs like surgeries as well as funeral costs.

WATCH: Las Vegas shooting GoFundMe raises $3.7 US for victims

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Las Vegas shooting GoFundMe raises $3.7 US for victims

On Tuesday, hospital officials said many of the wounded remain in critical condition.

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“I have no idea who I operated on,” said Dr. Jay Coates, of the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada, told the Associated Press. “They were coming in so fast, we were taking care of bodies. We were just trying to keep people from dying.”

The doctor told the news agency that once he saw some of the wounds victims were suffering from, he knew the shooting was different from others.

“It was very clear that the first patient I took back and operated on that this was a high-powered weapon,” Coates told the Associated Press. “This wasn’t a normal street weapon. This was something that did a lot of damage when it entered the body cavity.”

WATCH: 18 guns, ammo, explosives found in Las Vegas shooter’s house

Click to play video: '18 guns, ammo, explosives found in Las Vegas shooter’s house'
18 guns, ammo, explosives found in Las Vegas shooter’s house

U.S. officials also discounted a claim of responsibility by the militant Islamic State group.

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Clark County Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said “good for them,” when told ISIS had claimed responsibility for the attack.

“We have no evidence of that,” Lombardo said.

WATCH: Las Vegas shooting: Gunman commits deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history

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Las Vegas shooting: Gunman commits deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history

FBI special agent Aaron Rouse echoed the sheriff’s remarks on a terrorist group connection earlier Monday.

“We have determined to this point no connection with an international terrorist group,” the agent said.

A police tactical unit breached Paddock’s room in the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, only to find the shooter dead.

“We believe the individual killed himself prior to our entry,” Lombardo said. “There was a team of six officers that approached security.”

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The team searched the hotel floor by floor, until they located the suspected room. When the approached the room, they “received gunfire,” so they backed off until a SWAT team was able to respond.

READ MORE: Gunman used ‘bump-stock’ device to speed fire in Las Vegas shooting

Lombardo said a security guard was shot in the leg through the hotel room door where the shooter was holed up.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned the “senseless and cowardly act of violence.”

“Our hearts break for our American friends and neighbours today. On behalf of all Canadians, I offer my deepest condolences to those who lost loved ones and friends, and my prayers for a fast and full recovery for the many injured,” Trudeau said in a statement.

“We stand with the United States, and share their pain and horror at such a senseless and cowardly act of violence. Las Vegas has long been celebrated by people from around the globe, including many Canadians.

WATCH: Stephen Paddock sued Las Vegas casino in 2011 after fall
Click to play video: 'Stephen Paddock sued Las Vegas casino in 2011 after fall'
Stephen Paddock sued Las Vegas casino in 2011 after fall

“We grieve with this city and the United States. Such acts only strengthen our resolve to stand together, united,” the prime minister said.

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On Monday, Trump condemned the attack as an “act of pure evil.”

READ MORE: Jimmy Kimmel’s teary plea for gun control after 59 were killed in Las Vegas, his hometown

“In moments of tragedy and horror, America comes together as one. And it always has,” Trump said in a televised address. “Our unity cannot be shattered by evil, our bonds cannot be broken by violence and though we feel such great anger at the senseless murder of our fellow citizens, it is our love that defines us today, and always will, forever.”

Sunday’s shooting came more than four months after a suicide bombing at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, that killed 22 people. Almost 90 people were killed by gunmen inspired by Islamic State at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris during a performance by Eagles of Death Metal in November 2015.

With files from the Associated Press

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