The Beavercreek police have released more details about the shooting that occurred at a Walmart on Monday night, injuring four individuals. The shooter has been identified as 20-year-old Benjamin Jones from Dayton. Authorities have revealed that Jones had returned to Dayton within the past year.
According to 911 callers, Jones entered the store on Pentagon Blvd. carrying a High-Point .45-caliber carbine long gun and opened fire. On Tuesday morning, the police confirmed that three women and one man were among the injured, with three of them in critical condition and one sustaining non-life-threatening injuries. However, in an update later in the afternoon, it was reported that three victims were now in stable condition, while one remained critical but stable. All of the victims were customers at the Walmart.
Investigators have determined that Jones did not appear to have targeted any specific individual, as his victims were found throughout the store. Jones was later discovered dead in the store at 8:42 p.m., less than 10 minutes after the first 911 call was made. Police shared body camera footage from an officer who had entered the store after the shooting and found Jones deceased behind the vision center.
Jones’ car was located in the Walmart parking lot, and it was towed away on Tuesday morning after a search warrant was obtained. Additionally, a search warrant was executed at Jones’ residence with the assistance of the FBI.
The FBI is now investigating Jones’ background in an attempt to determine the motive behind the shooting. When asked if the incident was racially motivated, Zrinka Dilber, FBI Special Agent in Charge from the Cincinnati bureau, stated that they were still working with the Beavercreek police and did not yet have information regarding the motive.
As a result of the shooting, the Beavercreek Walmart has been temporarily closed until further notice.
