The suspected gunman responsible for the deadly shootings in the Texas cities of Midland and Odessa on Saturday evaded background checks by purchasing his weapon at a private sale.
According to multiple reports on Tuesday, suspected shooter Seth Aaron Ator had previously failed a background check due to a mental health issue. However, he managed to bypass the process this time by buying his AR-style rifle from a private seller, NBC News, Buzzfeed News, the Associated Press, and CBS News reported on Tuesday.
Under Texas law, private arms dealers aren’t required to run background checks on customers.
Ator allegedly killed seven people and injured at least 20 others while going on a shooting rampage on Saturday. He was killed by law enforcement in a shootout.
