BEAVERCREEK, Ohio – The FBI reported that the gunman who opened fire inside a Walmart in Beavercreek, Ohio, may have been motivated by racially violent extremist ideology, after wounding four people and then killing himself. The victims, two Black women, a white woman, and a white man, were targeted just days before Thanksgiving.
The shooter, identified as 20-year-old Benjamin Charles Jones, of Dayton, carried a Hi-Point 45-caliber Carbine long gun. He fired an undetermined number of rounds, leaving injured victims throughout the store, before turning the weapon on himself. Police were on the scene three minutes after the first call came in at 8:36 p.m. They found Jones dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at 8:42 p.m.
Investigators revealed that Jones had purchased the gun two days prior to the attack, and they were checking whether he provided false information on his background check form. Police confirmed that three of the victims were in stable condition, while one was in critical but stable condition.
The shooting in Ohio happened just a day after a man fatally shot a woman before killing himself outside a Walmart in Anchorage, Alaska, in a domestic violence-related crime. The Beavercreek store was also the site of a fatal shooting involving police almost 10 years ago, which resulted in changes in police policy and a $1.7 million settlement with the city.
In 2019, a white gunman killed 23 people at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, in a racist attack targeting Hispanic shoppers. This led Walmart to discontinue sales of certain kinds of ammunition and ask that customers no longer openly carry firearms in its stores. The retailer now sells only hunting rifles and related ammunition.
The shooting in Beavercreek, Ohio, is another tragic reminder of the ongoing issue of gun violence in the United States and the devastating impact it has on communities. As authorities continue to investigate the motives behind the attack, the focus remains on supporting the victims and their families during this difficult time.
