Brandon Hole, 19, the FedEx gunman who shot and killed eight people before taking his own life on Thursday, was able to acquire two rifles, despite a prior FBI investigation and seizure of his shotgun in March 2020.
On Saturday, the Indianapolis Police Department said Hole used two “assault rifles” in the attack, both of which were purchased legally in July and September, citing a trace from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Months earlier, however, local law enforcement seized a shotgun belonging to the teenager after his mother reportedly raised concerns that he was mentally unstable and might “commit suicide by cop.”
The FBI also indicated that it interviewed Hole last year but found no evidence of a crime, according to the Associated Press. The 19-year-old’s shotgun was never returned to him.
The gun seizure is consistent with red flag law proceedings, which allow authorities to take guns from those deemed a threat to themselves or others, prior to a scheduled hearing before a court of law. However, Police Chief Randal Taylor was unsure if he went through the process, according to the New York Times.
EIGHT KILLED IN MASS SHOOTING AT FEDEX FACILITY NEAR INDIANAPOLIS AIRPORT
“I don’t know how we held on to it,” Taylor said of the gun. “But it’s good that we did.”
The chief went on to say that Hole went on to “legally purchase a much more powerful weapon than a shotgun,” referring to the two “assault rifles” he used in the attack. It is unclear what caliber firearms he purchased, but generally, shotguns deliver greater terminal ballistics at close range than the commonly possessed intermediate cartridges fired from weapons such as the AR-15.
The Gun Owners of America, one of the country’s largest pro-Second Amendment groups, insisted that Hole was able to acquire his firearms after “multiple levels of gun control failed” to stop him.
“Attempts to prevent crime before it happens does not work. As in the tragic case in Indiana, multiple levels of gun control failed to stop this attack,” GOA Senior Vice President Erich Pratt told the Washington Examiner. “This individual’s gun was actually taken previously by authorities, and Indiana’s so-called red flag law failed to stop the killer. On top of that, FedEx’s gun-free policy ensured the victims were defenseless. We don’t need more ineffective laws to seize more guns, and we don’t need to expand red flag laws every time they fail.”
“Indiana and FedEx should repeal their anti-gun laws and policies that disarmed gun owners present at the scene of the attack,” he continued. “Armed citizen intervention is a documented and proven tool for saving lives and empowering victims of mass public shootings.”
Hole arrived at the parking lot of the FedEx facility during a shift change and began shooting people with a rifle. He eventually made his way inside the building and continued the violence but took his own life before he could be confronted by law enforcement. The incident lasted no more than five minutes.
The teenager, who was a former employee at the facility, killed 32-year-old Matthew Alexander, 19-year-old Samaria Blackwell, 66-year-old Amarjeet Johal, 64-year-old Jaswinder Kaur, 68-year-old Jaswinder Singh, 48-year-old Amarjit Sekhon, 19-year-old Karlie Smith, and 74-year-old John Weisert. Four of the victims were from the Sikh community.
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“We do not yet know the motive of the shooter, and we may never know for sure what drove him to do what he did. We do know, however, that the FedEx facility he targeted was well known for having a large Sikh workforce,” The Sikh Coalition wrote in a statement. “Given everything our community has experienced in the past–the pattern of violence, bigotry, and backlash we have faced–it is impossible not to feel that same pain and targeting in this moment. We expect that the authorities will continue their full investigation and share what they learn when they can, and they will take this into account.”
The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
