A gunman who allegedly walked around the Garden State Plaza mall in northern New Jersey Monday night, shooting bullets into the air, was found dead just hours after the incident Tuesday. Authorities believe that he killed himself.
The man did not hit any shoppers or employees during the incident, which happened around 9:20 p.m. He walked the hallways, shooting at security cameras. According to The New York Times, the man was identified as Richard Stoop, 20, of Teaneck, NJ.
Bergen County prosecutor John Molinelli said that Stoop shot himself a short time later and was found by authorities at 3:20 a.m. He was found in a very, very deep in an area that was under construction,” Molinelli said.
“We know that his intent was either suicide or to do something that would cause police to shoot him, which we call 'suicide by cop,’” Molinelli told CNN today. Stoop had an opportunity to shoot at others, but he didn’t, Molinelli noted. "Instead, he shot randomly at different locations.”
Molinelli confirmed that Stoop was found with a legal firearm, one made to look like an AK-47 assault rifle. It was owned by his brother and it is believed that he stole the gun. His brother did call authorities when he heard about the shooting, notes CNN.
“My brother intended to harm nobody else but himself,” Kevin Stoop, his brother, told the media today. He was saddened that his brother chose “an act of self-indulgence by taking his life publicly.”
Molinelli said that Stoop did use narcotics and sold drugs. “He at least thought that he was reaching a point where there was no recourse but to take his own life,” Molinelli explained.