Fifth senior employee passes away after multiple surgeries following Connor Sturgeon’s shooting rampage in Kentucky bank, that also left nine injured including two cops – Shooter ‘knew he had been fired’
Executive administrative officer Deana Eckert, 57, passed away Monday, after multiple surgeries following disgruntled staffer’s shooting rampage
Eckert was the fifth senior bank executive shot dead by their former colleague, Connor Sturgeon, on Monday
Sturgeon, 25, who had been at the bank since 2021, had told that he was going to fired
He burst into a conference room around 8.30 am with an AR-15 style rifle and opened fire on meeting attendees
Thomas Elliott, 63, James ‘Jim’ Tutt, 64, Joshua Barrick, 40, and Juliana Farmer, 57, were pronounced dead at the scene
Sturgeon wounded nine others, including two police officers before he was shot dead by Louisville police
Deana Eckert, 57, [photo], an executive administrative officer at the bank, was declared dead on Monday evening
The fifth death among victims of the Louisville bank shooting was recorded recorded in hospital on Monday.
Louisville police on Monday evening confirmed the death of Deana Eckert, 57, an executive administrative officer at the bank and a mother of two, was confirmed on Monday evening by Louisville police.
All five deaths so far, were senior executives at the bank.
Tommy Elliott, 63, a close friend of Governor Andy Beshear, was named among those killed, as were Joshua Barrick, 40; James ‘Jim’ Tutt, 64; and Juliana Farmer, 57.
They were declared dead at a press conference on Monday afternoon.
The five were shot dead by their colleague Connor Sturgeon when he stormed a conference room at Old National Bank at 8.30am with an assault rifle, half an hour before the branch opened to the public. Sturgeon, 25, who had been at the bank since 2021 had told that he was going to fired.
Jim Ryan, CEO of the bank, said on Monday evening: ‘There are no words to adequately describe the sadness and devastation that our Old National family is experiencing as we grieve the tragic loss of our team members and pray for the recovery of all those who were injured.’
Thomas Elliott, 63, [photo], one of Governor Andy Beshear’s closest friends, died Monday morning in the mass shooting at Old National Bank in Louisville, Kentucky
James ‘Jim’ Tutt, 64, [photo], was a market executive at Old National Bank
Joshua Barrick, 40, [photo], was vice president of commercial real estate at Old National Bank
Ryan continued: ‘Obviously, this is an incredibly difficult situation, and our entire focus is on making sure that everyone affected has the support and assistance they need.
‘On behalf of everyone at Old National, I also want to acknowledge and thank Louisville law enforcement, the medical community and state and local officials for their incredible response to this tragedy.
‘And finally, we ask you to please continue to pray for all those affected.’
Elliott, the bank’s senior vice president, was a friend of Governor Beshear and had donated $2,000 to his gubernatorial campaign in 2018.
He had donated to many Democratic candidates over the years, and was well known in local and state Democratic circles. He served on Beshear’s inaugural committee in 2019.
Tutt was a commercial real estate executive for the southern region of Old National Bank.
Juliana Farmer, 57, [photo], a loan analyst at the regional firm, was a mother and grandmother
Barrick, who appears to have a wife and two young children, was a senior vice president of commercial real estate at the bank, where he had worked since last August, according to his LinkedIn.
57-year-old Juliana Farmer, a loan analyst at the regional bank, is survived by her children and grand-children.
Gov Beshear earlier fought back tears as he revealed one of his friends had been killed in the atrocity – and a second was wounded.
‘I have a close friend that didn’t make it,’ he told a press conference.
LMPD Officer Nickolas Wilt [photo], 26, was shot in the head and is in critical condition, 10 days after graduating from the police academy. He has come out of brain surgery, the interim police chief said on Monday evening
Beshear said his state attorney general campaign was run out of the office building where the shooting took place.
‘I know virtually everyone in it, that’s my bank,’ he said.
‘Today I’m hurt and I’m hurting and I know so many people out there are as well.
‘We lost four children of God today, one of whom was one of my closest friends.
‘Tommy Elliot helped me build my law career, helped me become governor, gave me advice on being a good dad. One of the people I talk to most in the world and very rarely were we talking about my job.’
Connor Sturgeon, 25, whose LinkedIn page says a syndications associate and portfolio banker at Old National Bank has been identified as Monday’s shooter
Sturgeon, according to authorities, was an employee of the bank who had been fired, or was aware that he was about to lose his job.
He used an AR-15-style rifle and wounded nine people, including two police officers.
Connor Sturgeon seen [left] sitting with colleagues killed five of his former colleagues at Old National Bank, before he was shot dead by police on Monday. Troy Haste, [right], was in the room when Sturgeon, 25, opened fire. He survived
Troy Haste who was in the room when Sturgeon opened fire survived, but was spattered in his colleagues’ blood as he left the bank [photo] on Monday
Rookie police officer Nickolas Wilt, 26, was also shot in the head and remains in critical condition. He had only been in the job 10 days.
Interim Police Chief Jackie Gwinn-Villaroel said: ‘The next few days are important and very critical for Nickolas’s recovery.’
She said he had come out of brain surgery at University of Louisville Hospital.
Mayor Craig Greenberg said he handed Wilt his police academy graduation diploma less than two weeks ago.
‘Our city and so many from around the nation are praying for Officer Wilt’s strength and healing,’ Greenberg tweeted. ‘His heroic actions exemplify the best of law enforcement.’
The second injured officer has not been named.
Three victims have since been discharged from hospital.
During the shooting, it was overheard on police scanners that Sturgeon was ‘suicidal and texted a friend that he would ‘shoot up the bank.”
Police also confirmed that Sturgeon live-streamed the shooting on his Instagram, which has since been taken down.
The gunman was also killed in the shooting, but it is unclear if he died from a self-inflicted wound or from injuries he sustained as he exchanged gunfire with officers at the scene.
Joshua Barrick, vice president of commercial real estate at Old National Bank with his young family
One of the fatalities market executive at Old National Bank Jim Tutt is seen [photo] with his wife, Karen Tutt
Bank employees told how they fled from the blood-soaked scene and scrambled to the vault to hide from the killer as he rampaged through the building.
Photos showed shattered glass and pools of blood lying outside the front of the office.
Witnesses have said that Sturgeon was carrying a ‘long assault rifle’ when he fired multiple shots near the conference room at the bank.
‘He just started firing,’ an unnamed employee told WHAS.
‘I didn’t see his face. We were in the conference room.
‘Whoever was next to me got shot, their blood’s on me,’ he added.
Officers arrived within three minutes and found the shooter still firing, Louisville Metro Police Deputy Chief Paul Humphrey said. They exchanged fire with Sturgeon.
Bank manager Rebecca Buchheit-Sims was on a Microsoft Teams meeting on Monday morning when Connor Sturgeon burst in and opened fire, killing five of her colleagues
A high school friend said Sturgeon was a star athlete in Indiana, where he excelled at track, football and basketball at his school just across the Ohio river from Louisville.
But he suffered multiple concussions and wore a head guard.
‘The big thing I keep going back to is that in the first year of high school, we played football together in eighth grade, he was out most of the year because he had multiple concussions,’ the friend told The Daily Beast.
‘Then he had a couple more in high school.
‘I’m not saying it’s the cause but I always think back to that.
‘There were times I’d wonder, will this catch up with him? But never in this way. He’s the last person I’d expect would do this.’
Sturgeon a basketball and track star in high school suffered multiple concussions,and at times was unable to compete due to his head injuries, one of his high school friends said
The friend said that Sturgeon was popular and high flying, and was nicknamed ‘Mr Floyd Central’.
His father Todd Sturgeon was Floyd Central’s head basketball coach until last year.
He previously coached the University of Indianapolis’ men’s basketball team for 10 seasons, but left in 2007.
After graduating from Floyd Central in 2016, Sturgeon went to the University of Alabama and graduated in 2020, the university confirmed.
Police are seen on the scene of Monday’s shooting in Louisville. The shooter Connor Sturgeon worked at Old National Bank, but had been told he was being fired
LMPD officer stands outside Connor Sturgeon’s family home in Louisville
Sturgeon’s LinkedIn said he completed three summer internships between 2018-2020, before starting work at Old National Bank as a syndications associate and portfolio banker.
‘I am certified in the RMA Lending Decision Process, hold a Master’s in Finance from the University of Alabama, and am on the Young Professionals board for Junior Achievement of Kentuckiana,’ he wrote on his profile.
He also hosted a basketball-focused podcast with two friends, The Daily Beast said, and tweeted about the NBA.
He also posted shows of support for the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020, as well as criticism of police violence and of Donald Trump.
Bank manager Rebecca Buchheit-Sims was on a virtual meeting on Monday morning when Connor Sturgeon burst in and opened fire, killing five of her colleagues
A manager at Old National Bank witnessed her colleagues being murdered live on a Microsoft Teams session as their Louisville office was attacked by a recently fired employee on Monday morning.
Five people were killed when Connor Sturgeon took an AR-15 rifle into his workplace and began blasting his senior colleagues. Nine others were wounded, including two police officers – one of whom had only been with the force 10 days.
Sturgeon was then shot and killed by cops inside the bank.
Rebecca Buchheit-Sims told CNN: ‘I witnessed people being murdered. I don’t know how else to say that.’
A manager at Old National Bank witnessed her colleagues being murdered live on a Teams session as their Louisville office was attacked by a recently fired employee on Monday morning.
Five people were killed when Connor Sturgeon took an AR-15 rifle into his workplace and began blasting his senior colleagues. Nine others were wounded, including two police officers – one of whom had only been with the force 10 days. Sturgeon was only stopped when he was shot by police as they exchanged gunfire inside the bank.
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