A sheriff’s detective shot dead a man and two women after he was fired over child sex assault.
Joseph Chacon, Chief of Police at Austin Police Department, named the gunman as Stephen Nicholas Broderick, 41, who allegedly shot and killed three adults at an apartment complex near The Arboretum in what cops called a domestic situation.’
FBI agents and SWAT teams have issued a shelter at home order amid fears the shooter could take a hostage.
Broderick was reportedly put on unpaid leave after he was charged with sexually assaulting a child in June 2020.
Police did not say if the gunman was facing other criminal charges but told reporters that the suspect ‘might be former law enforcement.’
FBI agents, SWAT teams and helicopters are now involved in the search while urging anyone who sees the gunman to call 911 immediately.
Gunshots were reported on Sunday at 11:42 am. Austin Police Department confirmed that the shooter was still active by 1 pm.
40 minutes later, APD said that the shooting incident is believed to be a ‘domestic situation’ and suggested that the shooter did not pose a risk to the wider public.
But Austin Chief of Police Joseph Chacon told reporters at a press conference that authorities were advising people to shelter at home as the gunman could ‘take a hostage.’
Chacon described the victims as one black man and two Hispanic women.
“We think we know our suspect, Stephen Nicholas Broderick, 41,” he said.
“We are concerned he might possibly take a hostage and be himself sheltered somewhere waiting for us to leave.”
The chief said Broderick was wearing a baseball cap, sunglasses, and a gray hoodie, adding that he is 5 feet and 7 inches tall and black.
“We don’t know if he’s on a vehicle or on foot. We are asking individuals to continue sheltering in place because this is still an active,” Chacon continued.
What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments section and SHARE this story with your friends and family!