6 hours ago
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Wild video shows the moment cops took out a killer gunman who shot up a Las Vegas gym — where he was planning a mass killing before his gun jammed, according to officials.
Daniel Ortega, 34, was caught on surveillance footage casually strolling into the Las Vegas Athletic Club last Friday afternoon armed with a huge rifle.
Ortega had approached an employee at the front desk before he briefly paced around and exchanged words with another worker, the surveillance clip shows.
He then suddenly lifted his gun and started firing as the employee tried to flee, police said.
Ortega managed to pump out a total of 24 rounds in the gym lobby, killing 31-year-old gym manager Edgar Quinonez and injuring three others.
Police now believe he was planning more death, but was thwarted by his gun jamming.
“Fortunately, this gentleman had a malfunction in his weapon, which actually saved this from being a mass casualty event,” Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Assistant Sheriff Jamie Prosser said.
The gunman was then caught on camera stalking the front doors as responding officers staged themselves outside.
Body camera footage shows Ortega trying to make a run for it before an officer shot and struck him. He died at a nearby hospital, police said.
Cops are still trying to determine a motive for the bloodshed. It wasn’t clear if those shot alongside Quinonez, the murdered manager, were employees or gymgoers. Their conditions were not immediately known.
Ortega worked out at the gym but there didn’t appear to be an immediate connection between him and the slain worker, cops said.
Vegas suffered the worst mass shooting in history in 2017 when Stephen Paddock shot more than 600 people — killing 61 — from a hotel overlooking the Route 91 Harvest music festival.
English (US)