Police have released part of the body camera footage of the moments when officers entered the hotel room of the Las Vegas shooter who opened fire on a concert in October 2017.
The gunman, Stephen Paddock, killed 58 people, including several Canadians when he used an arsenal of modified semi-automatic rifles to fire onto the crowd at the Route 91 Harvest Festival.
A previous police report said Paddock had researched SWAT techniques and barricaded himself on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel during the attack.
The 64-year-old fatally shot himself before officers stormed his room after the mass shooting.
In the videos released by Las Vegas Police, officers Sgt. Joshua Bitsko and David Newton can be seen entering the room and looking for the shooter.
WATCH: Bodycam footage shows Las Vegas police searching for shooter in hotel
“Breach, breach, breach,” officers say, before they go into the room. Officers can also be heard searching for the suspect.
Get daily National news
The body-cam footage for the first officer to enter the room, Levi Hancock, was not available because he didn’t activate his camera, officials said. The disclosure by police lawyers raises questions about whether officers followed department policy.
The top spokesperson for the local sheriff’s department, Carla Alston, said Wednesday that no one in the agency would comment about whether the first officer through the door followed proper procedure by not turning on his camera or whether he had been disciplined for violating policies.
The videos were released as part of a court order after U.S. media outlets sued. Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo said the videos don’t change the facts given shortly after the massacre.
“What is seen on those videos in no way changes the facts that we were able to clarify for you shortly after the crime,” Cook County Sheriff Joe Lombardo said.
Aaron Rouse, the FBI agent in charge in Las Vegas, has said a final report on the shooting may not be complete until the anniversary of the shooting, on Oct. 1.
*With files from the Associated Press
Comments