Naked except for a green jacket, he then fled, and he remained at large as of Sunday night. The police said murder warrants were being drafted.
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Don Aaron, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, said at a news conference on Sunday that after leaving the restaurant, Mr. Reinking shed his jacket. In it were two magazines of AR-15 ammunition.
The police credited a customer with averting further bloodshed. The customer, James Shaw Jr., 29, seized the moment when he saw Mr. Reinking apparently trying to reload his rifle. Mr. Shaw burst out from behind a swinging door where he had been hiding, wrested the weapon away and threw it over a countertop.
“I kind of made up my mind, because there was no way to lock that door, that if it was going to come down to it, he was going to have to work to kill me,” Mr. Shaw said at the news conference.
Mr. Reinking fled on foot, and apparently returned to his apartment nearby to put on pants. He was last seen shirtless and shoeless, Police Chief Steve Anderson said. Investigators had yet to determine a motive for the killings.
Officials could not fully explain how Mr. Reinking regained possession of his weapons after they were taken away following his episode near the White House last year, which prompted federal authorities to work with county officials in Illinois to investigate Mr. Reinking. The Tazewell County Sheriff’s Office in Illinois gave the weapons he owned — including the AR-15 he took to the Waffle House on Sunday — to his father.
Sheriff Robert M. Huston of Tazewell County said in a news conference on Sunday that while Mr. Reinking “voluntarily surrendered” the weapons on Aug. 24, his father had a firearm owner’s identification card and a legal right to take the weapons.
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“He was allowed to do that after he assured deputies that he would keep them secure and away from Travis,” Sheriff Huston said. “We have no information about how Travis came back into possession of those firearms.”
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The police in Nashville indicated that Mr. Reinking’s father returned the weapons to his son. The father, Jeffrey Reinking, could not be reached for comment on Sunday.
Even before he went to Washington, Mr. Reinking had a history of encounters with law enforcement in Illinois.
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According to one sheriff’s report from May 27, 2016, he “was delusional and believed the famous entertainer, Taylor Swift, was harassing him via stalking and hacking his phone.” It added that he said he found Ms. Swift at a Dairy Queen in Morton and chased her before she disappeared.
Mr. Reinking’s family members said he had had these delusions since August 2014. The report noted that “Travis is hostile towards police and does not recognize police authority.”
In another episode on June 16, 2017, in Tremont, Ill., the police responded to a complaint that Mr. Reinking, wearing a woman’s pink housecoat, jumped into a pool and began arguing with lifeguards to get them to fight with him. No one at the pool wanted to press charges, the report said.
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Mr. Reinking’s attempt to meet with the president came one month later.
Mr. Aaron said Mr. Reinking was believed to have moved to Nashville in the fall and worked in the crane and construction industries. Mr. Reinking was fired from a job about three weeks ago and found a new job, Mr. Aaron said, but had not been seen at work since Monday.
The authorities said Mr. Reinking could still be in possession of a handgun and a rifle, which Chief Anderson described as “more of a hunting-type rifle than an assault rifle.”
The Nashville police identified the four people who died as one Waffle House employee, Taurean C. Sanderlin, 29, of Goodlettsville; and three customers: Joe R. Perez, 20, of Nashville; DeEbony Groves, 21, of Gallatin; and Akilah Dasilva, 23, of Antioch.
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Jennifer Wetzel, a spokeswoman for Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said one wounded victim was in critical condition and another was in critical but stable condition. Two other victims were treated for minor injuries and discharged from TriStar Southern Hills Medical Center in Nashville, said Katie Radel, a spokeswoman there.
Waffle House restaurants are open 24 hours and speckled throughout the South, especially along the interstates.
The gunfire on Sunday was the latest burst of violence at one of the chain’s outposts. In January, an altercation at a Waffle House in Missouri turned fatal when a security guard opened fire. And a deadly shooting outside a location in Florida that same month recently led to a lawsuit.
Still, Sunday’s attack was especially jarring in its method and magnitude.
Walt Ehmer, the company’s chief executive, said it was a “very sad day” and thanked Mr. Shaw. “You are a hero,” he said. “You’re my hero.”
But Mr. Shaw demurred. “I’m not a hero,” he said, adding that he acted out of self-preservation.
(CNN) Authorities are searching for Travis Reinking, who is suspected of carrying out a mass shooting at a Waffle House restaurant in the Nashville area on Sunday, killing four people. He is believed to be armed and dangerous.
Here's what we know about the incident:
What happened?
Reinking, 29, approached a Waffle House in Antioch around 3:23 a.m. (4:23 a.m. ET) and used an "assault-type rifle" to fatally shoot two people standing outside, according to Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron . Reinking, who was barely clothed at the time, then went inside the restaurant and continued firing. Two victims inside were also fatally shot. Others were wounded, suffering cuts to their faces and bodies from shattered windows.
The shooting ended when a patron, James Shaw Jr. , was able to wrestle the weapon away from the gunman, who then fled on foot.
Who is the suspected gunman?
Travis Reinking
Reinking is from Morton, Illinois. He moved to Tennessee in 2017.
According to police, Reinking was once arrested by the Secret Service for trespassing near the White House . He was charged with unlawful entry, an arrest report states, but had his charges dismissed after completing community service.
The FBI interviewed Reinking shortly after he completed the program and seized his guns. Authorities in Tazewell County, Illinois, later returned the seized weapons to Reinking's father, who gave them back to his son, police said. One of those guns was the same AR-15-style rifle used in Sunday's attack.
In May 2016, Reinking experienced a delusional episode in his hometown of Morton, according to a police report. He told first responders that he believed pop star Taylor Swift was stalking him. Reinking's family also told police he had made comments about killing himself and owned several guns.
Who are the victims?
Authorities identified the victims as:
Taurean C. Sanderlin, 29, of Goodlettsville, Tennessee. She was a Waffle House employee.
Joe R. Perez, 20, of Nashville.
Akilah Dasilva, 23, of Antioch.
DeEbony Groves, 21, of Gallatin.
What happened to the man who stopped the shooting?
JUST WATCHED Man hailed as hero: It could've been me Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Man hailed as hero: It could've been me 01:40
The man who wrestled the gun away from Reinking and prevented him from killing more people doesn't want to be called a hero.
James Shaw Jr. said he ambushed and wrestled Reinking to save himself.
"I'm a believer that everybody could do what I did," Shaw told CNN affiliate WSMV-TV
Shaw tackled Reinking as he was looking at his rifle and had stopped shooting.
"He decided to rush the gunman, actually wrestled that assault rifle away, tossed it over the counter. At that point, the gunman then fled," said Aaron.
Shaw was grazed by a bullet on his elbow while grappling with the gunman. He also burned his right hand grabbing the barrel of the weapon.
The shooting didn't stop Shaw from going to church with his father Sunday morning, hours after confronting the gunman. His hand could be seen wrapped in a bandage during a press conference Sunday afternoon.
Shaw also created a GoFundMe page Sunday to assist the victims of the shooting, a GoFundMe spokeswoman told CNN. The goal is to raise $15,000, and Shaw had already raised over $7,000 as of 11:30 p.m. Sunday.
What's happening now?
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has added Reinking to its "Top 10 Most Wanted List" and launched a massive manhunt for the shooter, who they believe may still be armed and dangerous.
Feel free to RT this image with relevant case details! Thank you for helping us spread the word about this wanted fugitive! pic.twitter.com/0ppwp5av3v — TBI (@TBInvestigation) April 22, 2018
"Keep your doors locked, keep your eyes open. If you see this individual -- if you see a nude guy walking around this morning -- call the police department immediately," Aaron said.
Nashville police said more than 80 officers are searching for Reinking with the help of the Tennessee Highway Patrol, the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
Reinking faces felony charges, including three counts of criminal homicide.
In Tazewell, Illinois, where Reinking's guns were originally seized, Sheriff Robert Huston said in a Sunday press conference that he wasn't sure if Reinking is headed back to the area, but that his department is ready for it.
(CNN) Police warn that a gunman accused of killing four people early Sunday at a Waffle House near Nashville is on the run and is armed and dangerous.
Authorities suspect that 29-year-old Travis Reinking,who recently moved to the Nashville, Tennessee, area, may have two weapons on him -- a rifleand a hand gun. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation added Reinking to its "Top 10 Most Wanted" list, according to authorities.
Police swarmed homes and swaths of woods in the area of the shooting, searching for the suspect, who authorities believe may be close by. After Reinking fled the scene of the shooting completely naked, police believe he went to his apartment, put on a pair of pants and may have escaped into the woods.
Sheriff's deputies 400 miles north of Nashville in Tazewell County, Illinois, where Reinking recently lived, were also on high alert.
"He's murdered four times with no apparent reason and no apparent motive. So we're very concerned," said Metropolitan Nashville Police Chief Steve Anderson.
BREAKING: Travis Reinking, 29, of Morton, IL, is person of interest in Waffle House shooting. Vehicle the gunman arrived in is registered to him. Gunman last seen walking south on Murfreesboro Pike. He shed is coat and is nude. See Reinking? Pls call 615-862-8600 immediately. pic.twitter.com/duoWCo5fC0 — Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) April 22, 2018
Reinking arrived at the Waffle House in Antioch, southeast of Nashville at 3:19 a.m., wearing nothing but a green jacket, Metro Nashville Police spokesman Don Aaron said.
The suspected gunman sat in his pickup truck for 3 1/2 to 4 minutes "just looking at people inside the restaurant," Aaron said. Reinking got out of his pickup, wielding an "assault-type rifle," and fatally shot two people outside the Waffle House, police said.
Investigation on going at the Waffle House. Scene being processed by MNPD experts. This is the rifle used by the gunman. pic.twitter.com/lihhRImHQN — Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) April 22, 2018
"He then went inside the restaurant (and) continued firing," Aaron said. He said police responded to an active shooter call at 3:25 a.m.
Some witnesses suffered cuts on their faces from shattered windows. Two more victims inside the restaurant were fatally shot.
Chuck Cordero, who was on a break from his job as a 24/7 roadside serviceman, was about to walk in to the restaurant when the shooting took place.
"I was very lucky -- where I usually sit, one woman was killed and another was shot," he told CNN. "I was very fortunate to have not gone into the Waffle House and sat in my car."
"My friend 'T,' the cook at Waffle House, died trying to get away," Cordero said.
Police say a Waffle House customer snatched the rifle from the gunman.
Reinking fatally shot Waffle House employee Taurean C. Sanderlin, 29, of Goodlettsville, Tennessee and customer Joe R. Perez, 20, of Nashville outside of the restaurant, police said. Akilah Dasilva, 23, of Antioch, who was shot inside, later died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, according to authorities.
DeEbony Groves, 21 of Gallatin, Tennessee, was fatally wounded in the restaurant, police said.
Shanita Waggoner, 21, of Nashville, and Sharita Henderson, 24, of Antioch, were injured by gunfire and were being treated at Vanderbilt.
"This morning, our city woke up to tragic news," Nashville Mayor David Briley said. "The fragility of life was brought home to us all by the death of four innocent Nashvillians."
It was the second mass shooting in Antioch in almost seven months.
'He is the hero'
The carnage stopped only because of the heroics of a customer who heard the gunshots and hid near the restaurant's bathrooms.
Police said the customer, identified by a relative as James Shaw Jr., monitored the gunman's moves from afar and jumped into action when he saw an opportunity.
"He saw the gunman looking at his rifle. At that point, the shots had stopped. So he decided to rush the gunman, actually wrestled that assault rifle away, tossed it over the counter. At that point, the gunman then fled," Aaron said.
James Shaw Jr., 29, took a selfie of himself Sunday showing an injury as well as a bandaged hand. Shaw was able to wrestle an AR-15 style rifle away from the shooter.
"He is the hero here, and no doubt he saved many lives by wrestling the gun away and then tossing it over the counter, and prompting the man to leave," he added.
Police said Reinking shed his jacket and fled on foot.
Later Sunday morning, he apparently "clothed himself with a pair of pants," Aaron said.
"A man believed to be Travis Reinking was last seen in a wood line near Discovery at Mountain View Apts. on Mountain Springs Drive near the Waffle House," police tweeted . "The man was seen wearing black pants and no shirt."
A man believed to be Travis Reinking was last seen in a wood line near Discovery at Mountain View Apts. on Mountain Springs Dr. near the Waffle House. The man was seen wearing black pants and no shirt. — Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) April 22, 2018
A police helicopter and a police dog tried to track the suspect after the shooting, but the dogs lost the scent, police said.
Authorities recovered Reinking's jacket nearby, which had two magazines of ammunition for an AR-15 style rifle, according to Aaron.
"He clearly came armed with a lot of firepower, intending to devastate the south Nashville area," Aaron said.
Suspect was once arrested near White House
after he crossed an exterior security barrier near the White House, said Todd Hudson, the special agent in charge of the Secret Service's Nashville field office. On July 7, 2017, the United States Secret Service arrested Reinking for unlawful entry, a misdemeanor,after he crossed an exterior security barrier near the White House, said Todd Hudson, the special agent in charge of the Secret Service's Nashville field office.
Authorities in Tazewell County, Illinois, and the FBI interviewed Reinking, Aaron said. At the FBI's request, Reinking's Illinois firearms authorization was revoked, and four weapons -- including the AR-15 style rifle used in the Sunday's shooting -- were seized, Aaron said.
Tazewell County Sheriff Robert Huston said the firearms were originally seized in August from a construction business that authorities believe is family owned.
At some point, the guns were given to Reinking's father, Jeffrey, with the understanding the father would secure the weapons and not return them to Travis, Huston said.
Reinking's father could possess the weapons under state law because he had a valid state firearms owner identification card, the sheriff said.
Huston said the officers did not believe they had any legal authority to withhold the weapons.
Reinking's father acknowledged that he had given the guns back to this son, Aaron said.
Authorities so far have recovered two weapons, including one found Sunday at Reinking's one-bedroom apartment, police said. But they are concerned he may have the two other weapons that were not found in his home.
"At this point, the young man could be anywhere, and whether he may try to return home is a distinct possibility," Huston said. "So our officers are definitely on alert."
Anderson said he doesn't know of any Tennessee law that Reinking would have violated by having the weapons in that state.
"We were not aware of him. He had not created any incident that brought him to our attention," Anderson added.
Suspect worked in construction
Reinking is believed to have moved to the Nashville area last fall. He worked in construction and was fired from a job about three weeks ago, Aaron said.
The suspect started with another construction company last Monday but did not show up for work the next day, Aaron said.
Waffle House, which has more than 1,500 locations across the country, offered its condolences.
"We ask for everyone to keep the victims and their families in their thoughts and prayers," the restaurant chain tweeted
"It's a very sad day indeed for our Waffle House family of associates and customers who are impacted by this tragedy today," said Waffle House CEO Walt Ehmer.
The gunman who killed four people and wounded four at a Waffle House restaurant in Nashville, before fleeing in the nude, was still at large on Sunday night. It was thought he could be carrying two guns.
The customer who wrestled an assault rifle from the suspect, ending the shooting earlier on Sunday, was saluted as a hero. “He was going to have to work to kill me,” said James Shaw Jr, 29.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest A rifle police said was used in the shooting. Photograph: HO/AFP/Getty Images
The secret service said meanwhile that the suspect, 29-year-old Travis Reinking, was arrested last year for being in a restricted area near the White House. Reinking’s firearms authorization was revoked at the request of the FBI and four weapons were seized, including the AR-15 he allegedly used in the Nashville shooting.
Reinking is from Morton, Illinois, and was known to both Illinois and federal law enforcement, Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said. A sheriff in Illinois said Reinking’s state firearms card was revoked after his arrest and his guns were given to his father with the promise they wouldn’t be shared with his son. Aaron said Reinking’s father had given them back to his son. Police said they were in possession of the AR-15 and another gun. Two others were unaccounted for.
The shooting happened at 3.25am and the suspect wore nothing but a green jacket when he shot two people in the parking lot outside the Waffle House, Aaron said. Entering the restaurant, he continued firing until Shaw grabbed the rifle and he escaped.
Police speculate that Reinking ran to his nearby apartment, grabbed a pair of trousers and continued his escape. A shirtless, shoeless man believed to be him was spotted in the woods nearby, police said.
One witness, Chuck Cordero, told the Tennessean newspaper he was outside the restaurant. “He did not say anything,” Cordero said of the gunman, who he said was “all business”. Cordero said Shaw saved lives. “Had that guy had a chance to reload his weapon, there was plenty more people in that restaurant,” he said.
I’m pretty sure he grazed my arm. At that time I made up my mind … that he was going to have to work to kill me James Shaw Jr
At an afternoon news conference, Shaw said he went to the restaurant after visiting a nightclub. Entering minutes ahead of the gunman, he and a friend were seated at a high counter when they heard gunshots.
Shaw said he thought stacks of plates had fallen over. It was then that he saw restaurant workers scatter, he said, and saw a body near the front door as the gunman burst through it.
“I looked back and I saw a person lying on the ground right at the entrance of the door, then I jumped and slid ... I went behind a push door, a swivel door,” Shaw said. “He shot through that door. I’m pretty sure he grazed my arm. At that time I made up my mind ... that he was going to have to work to kill me. When the gun jammed or whatever happened, I hit him with the swivel door.”
Shaw said it was then that they began wrestling, grabbing the hot barrel of the gun: “He was kind of cussing while we were wrestling around. When I finally got the gun he was cussing like I was in the wrong ... it wasn’t any kind of talking between us. I just knew I just had to get that away from him.”
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Police officials investigate at the scene of the shooting. Photograph: Rick Musacchio/EPA
“I grabbed it from him and threw it over the countertop and I just took him with me out the entrance.”
Shaw, who said he ran one way and saw the suspect jogging or trotting another way, had a bandage on his right hand. He said he had an apparent bullet graze on one elbow and hit his knee as he escaped, hurting some fingers. He did not see himself as a hero, he said.
“I didn’t really fight that man to save everyone else. That may not be a popular thing,” Shaw said. “I took the gun so I could get myself out”.
Tears welled in his eyes as law enforcement agents nonetheless called him a hero. He said he was glad he ended up saving other lives. Waffle House CEO Walter Ehmer also thanked Shaw. “You don’t get to meet too many heroes in life,” Ehmer said. “We are forever in your debt.”
Of the injured, Vanderbilt University Medical Center spokeswoman Jennifer Wetzel said one was in critical condition and another was critical but stable. Police identified those being treated as 21-year-old Shanita Waggoner and 24-year-old Sharita Henderson, both of Nashville. TriStar Southern Hills Medical Center spokeswoman Katie Radel said two people were treated for minor injuries.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest A Swat team and bomb squad serve a search warrant at the apartment of the suspected gunman. Photograph: Rick Musacchio/EPA
Those killed were 29-year-old restaurant worker Taurean C Sanderlin, of Goodlettsville; 20-year-old Joe R Perez of Nashville; 23-year-old Akilah Dasilva of Nashville; and Deebony Groves, a 21-year-old woman from Gallatin, Tennessee.
A statement said Sanderlin and Perez were killed outside the restaurant and Dasilva and Groves were shot inside. Dasilver died at Vanderbilt.
Under steady rain more than 10 hours later, police were still searching for Reinking. Aaron said the suspect lived near the restaurant in the Antioch neighborhood; police used yellow crime scene tape to block access to an apartment complex about half a mile away.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Travis Reinking. Photograph: Jose Romero/AFP/Getty Images
“This is a very sad day for the Waffle House family,” the company said in a statement. “We ask for everyone to keep the victims and their families in their thoughts and prayers.”
Nashville mayor David Briley described “a tragic day”. “My heart goes out to the families & friends of every person who was killed or wounded,” he said in a statement.
US representative Jim Cooper, a Democrat whose district includes Nashville, said in a statement the shooting showed the need for tighter restrictions on “widespread civilian access to military-grade assault weapons”.
Bill Haslam, the Republican Tennessee governor,said he and his wife, Crissy, were “deeply saddened by the tragic incident in Antioch early this morning”.
• This article was amended on 23 April 2018 to correct the name of the gun allegedly used in the Nashville shooting.
