| Murders of Alison Parker and Adam Ward | |
|---|---|
  Moneta  Moneta | |
| Location | Bridgewater Plaza Moneta, Virginia, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 37°08′36″N 79°40′13″W / 37.14330°N 79.67027°W |
| Date | August 26, 2015
|
| Target | Alison Parker and Adam Ward |
Attack type | Mass shooting, murder–suicide |
| Weapons | Glock 19 9mm pistol[1][2][3] |
| Deaths | 3 (including the perpetrator) |
| Injured | 1 |
| Perpetrator | Vester Lee Flanagan II (aka Bryce Williams) |
| Motive | Perceived workplace animosity and racial prejudice, supposed revenge for the Charleston church shooting[4] |
On the morning of August 26, 2015, news reporter Alison Parker and photojournalist Adam Ward, both employees of CBS affiliate WDBJ in Roanoke, Virginia, United States, were fatally shot while conducting a live television interview near Smith Mountain Lake in Moneta. They were interviewing Vicki Gardner, executive director of the local chamber of commerce, when all three were attacked by a gunman in a mass shooting. Parker, age 24, and Ward, age 27, died at the scene, while Gardner survived.[5]
The gunman was 41-year-old Vester Lee Flanagan II, a former reporter at WDBJ who had been fired in 2013 for disruptive conduct.[6] After a five-hour manhunt, Flanagan shot himself during a car chase with police officers and died later at a hospital.[7][8][9]
- ^ Merda, Chad (August 27, 2015). "ATF: Virginia gunman passed background check, obtained gun legally". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on September 1, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ^ Hodari, David (August 27, 2015). "Virginia news shooting: the unanswered questions". The Telegraph. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
- ^ Pete Williams; Andrew Blankstein; Tom Winter (August 27, 2015). "Vester Flanagan Bought Gun Legally From Virginia Dealer, Officials Say". NBC News. Retrieved August 28, 2015.
- ^ Eliott C. McLaughlin; Catherine E. Shoichet (August 27, 2015). "Police: Bryce Williams fatally shoots self after killing journalists on air". CNN. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
- ^ Web Staff (August 26, 2015). "Two WDBJ7 employees killed in attack at Bridgewater Plaza". WDBJ. Archived from the original on August 26, 2015. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
- ^ Rogers, Katie; Alan Blinder (August 26, 2015). "Virginia TV Reporter and Photographer Shot During Live Broadcast". The New York Times. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
- ^ Bacon, John (August 26, 2015). "Suspect in on-air murder of journalists kills himself". USA Today. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
USAToday.Angeredwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Williamson, Jeff (August 26, 2015). "WDBJ Shooting Suspect Shot Himself, Died in Hospital". WHSV 3. Archived from the original on November 16, 2015. Retrieved October 25, 2015.