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UPDATE: Vester L. Flanagan has been identified as the "former disgruntled employee" who shot and killed reporter Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward this morning, according to Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe. Flanagan - who used the alias Bryce Williams - used to work at the station as an on-air personality and claims Parker "made racist comments" while at work one day.
Flanagan recorded the shooting from his point of view and uploaded it to Facebook before tweeting about it (both accounts have since been suspended). Nearly five hours after the killings he shot himself as he was confronted by law enforcement officials on I-66 in Fauquier County.
Flanagan survived the failed suicide attempt and is currently in critical condition at a nearby hospital.
Source: WDBJ7
Reporter Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward from WDBJ7-TV were shot and killed this morning during a live television broadcast - Vicki Gardner, the woman being interviewed by Parker, is currently undergoing surgery after being shot in the back.
The tragedy took place just outside of Moneta, Virginia at Bridgewater Plaza around 6:45 a.m. Parker, 24, was interviewing Gardner - executive director of the Smith Mountain Lake Regional Chamber of Commerce - when a gunman appeared and reportedly fired his weapon six or seven times. As the shots rang out you can hear the women screaming as Ward, 27, falls to the ground and the screen turns to news anchor Kimberly McBroom, who is visibly shaken.
WDBJ General Manager Jeff Marks has since released this statement: "We do not know the motive. We do know the Franklin County sheriff ... they are working very diligently to track down both the motive and the person responsible for this terrible crime against two fine journalists. Our hearts are broken. We have people walking around here in tears, lots of hugs."
Parker's fiance, Chris Hurst, is also a reporter at WDBJ7-TV and witnessed the shooting live from the station. "We didn't share this publicly, but @AParkerWDBJ7 and I were very much in love. We just moved in together. I am numb," he wrote on Twitter this morning.
The suspect remains on the loose although authorities have already confirmed his identity, according to CNN. Stay tuned for more info as the story develops.
