Jake Davison, who killed five people, including a young girl, in Plymouth was a licensed firearms holder, police have revealed.
The 22-year-old shot two women, two men and the three-year-old girl in a deadly six-minute spree in the Keyham area of the city on Thursday evening.
Police said the incident, the worst mass shooting in Britain since 2010, was not terror-related.
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In online videos Davison spoke of being “beaten down” and “defeated by life”.
Emergency services were called to Biddick Drive shortly after 18:00 BST on Thursday. Five people, including Davison, died at the scene and one died later in hospital.
Devon and Cornwall Police Chief Constable Shaun Sawyer said Davison was a firearms licence holder.
He said the weapon used in the shooting had been described by witnesses as a “pump action shotgun” but police were not confirming that at this stage.
Mr Sawyer said a firearm had been recovered from the scene and officers were not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident.
He said: “We believe we have an incident that is domestically related, that has spilled into the street and seen several people in Plymouth losing their lives in extraordinarily tragic circumstances.”
He next went into a park, where he shot a 59-year-old man who died at the scene, and then moved to Henderson Place where he shot a woman, 66, who later died at Derriford Hospital.
“Eyewitnesses have told us that then Mr Davison turned the gun on himself taking his own life,” said Mr Sawyer.
The police are working at 13 scenes and said they would examine Davison’s computer hard drive and social media posts as part of the investigation.
Mr Sawyer said “no motive” had been identified at present.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said it had received a mandatory referral from the Devon and Cornwall force.
The referral was in relation to the shooting as well as prior police contact with Davison, including the force’s role and actions regarding firearms licensing.
Gun laws in the UK are sometimes described as some of the strictest in the world and a certificate issued by the police is needed to possess, buy or acquire a firearm or shotgun, and ammunition. (BBC)
