Seth Aaron Ator, the man who murdered seven people and injured 22 in Odessa, Texas, over the weekend was fired from his trucking job a few hours before embarking on the mass shooting, The New York Times reported over the weekend.
Authorities stressed, however, that they do not know if his dismissal from his job was a motivating factor in the shooting spree.
“There are no definite answers as to motive or reasons at this point, but we are fairly certain that the subject did act alone,” Odessa Police Chief Michael Gerke said.
Ator was pulled over Saturday by state troopers for failing to use a turn single before beginning opening fire, according to police. He then led officials on a high speed chase during which he randomly shot at motorists and security forces before being killed by officers.
Ator had a criminal record but there were no open warrants for his arrest. He had been arrested in 2001 on misdemeanour charges of criminal trespass and evading arrest, according to state records.
He used a AR-15-style rifle during his rampage, but Gerke said it was not immediately known whether Ator had legally bought the weapon.
Similar assault-style guns have been used in most of the deadliest mass shootings in the United States this decade, according to the Independent.
Such military-style assault weapons had been largely banned from 1994 until 2004, and remain a major part of the controversy over gun control.
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