A gunman wearing a gas mask set off an unknown gas and fired into a crowded movie theater in suburban Denver at a midnight opening of the Batman movie “The Dark Knight Rises,” killing 12 people and injuring at least 50 others, authorities said.
Moviegoers didn’t know what was happening and some thought the attack was part of the show. Then they saw a silhouette of a person in the smoke at the front of the theater near the screen, pointing a gun at the crowd.
“I told my friend ‘we’ve got to get out of here,’ but then he shot people trying to go out the exits,” Jennifer Seeger told NBC’s “Today.” She said the shooter made his way up the aisle, firing as he went, saying nothing.
Federal law enforcement officials identified the suspect as James Holmes, a 24-year-old American.
Holmes is in police custody, and the FBI says there is no indication that incident is tied to any terrorist groups.
The federal law enforcement officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation
Some of those injured are children, including a 3-month-old infant who was shot.
