President Joe Biden privately met with students at the University of Nevada Las Vegas after the tragic shootings that occurred this week.
Anthony Polito, a 67-year-old college professor, who died on the scene following the shooting, was named as the suspect shortly after the tragedy occurred. The investigation indicates Polito fired at police first, before law enforcement shot and killed him.
Three people were killed on site, with a fourth individual left with serious injuries during the attack on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus.
Authorities have determined that the victims who were killed in the shooting were faculty or staff — not students.
Joe Biden’s Private Message To UNLV Students On Shooting
The President of the United States delivered a speech, addressing the UNLV shooting, on Friday.
“This is not normal and we can never let it become normal,” the President stated. “I’m grateful to the law enforcement officers who risked their lives. We join people across the country praying for the families of those killed whose hearts have been broken by yet another horrific gun violence.”
The President then brought up the 2017 Las Vegas Strip shooting — a tragic event that is “still in the minds of so many people” and that left nearly 60 people dead.
“Folks, we got to get smart. There have been over 600 mass shootings in America this year alone, plus daily acts of gun violence that don’t even make the national news. This is not normal and we can never let it become normal,” Biden said, adding, “People have the right to feel safe — be safe.”
President Joe Biden Calls On Capitol Hill
Biden then called on Capitol Hill “to step up,” reiterating his stance on gun control, demanding Congress “to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, pass national red flag laws … require safe storage, [and] enact universal background checks and other common-sense measures to save lives.”
After the Maine mass shooting, which occurred in October 2023, President Joe Biden stated that Republicans should “fulfill their obligation to keep the American people safe,” but “until that day comes, I will continue to do everything in my power to end this gun violence epidemic.”
Robert Card, the main suspect in the mass shootings that occurred in Lewiston, Maine, was committed to a mental hospital involuntarily just months before the tragic events. It was previously reported that the 40-year-old army veteran stated he was hearing voices, and had allegedly threatened to shoot up the National Guard base in Saco. Reports also stated he was then committed to a mental health facility for two weeks this summer.
Biden, at the time, added, “The Lewiston community – and all Americans – deserve nothing less.”
Las Vegas Suspect Sends Suspicious Letters
Anthony Polito, the main suspect in the Las Vegas shooting, is reported to have sent 22 letters “to various University personnel across the country” with no return address prior to the attack. The first letter, which contained an “unknown white powder” was intercepted by Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD). They urged anyone who had received mail similar to the intercepted letter to contact authorities.
Polito had applied for a teaching job in 2020 but was not hired, two senior law enforcement officials told NBC News.
A specific motive for the UNLV shooting is still under investigation.
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