This post has been updated.
Police in Lafayette, La., have identified the gunman who opened fire Thursday night in a local movie theater as John Russel Houser.
The shooter killed two people and injured nine before taking his own life.
Officials described Houser, a 59-year-old white male, as a “drifter.” They said he had been living in Alabama, but was staying at a hotel in Louisiana since early July.
Lafayette Police Chief Jim Craft said that officials believe Houser planned to carry out the shooting and then flee the theater. Houser was forced back into the theater when police arrived at the scene, according to Craft. Police found wigs and disguises while searching Houser’s hotel room.
Police have not yet determined whether Houser was working with anyone else, according to Craft.
Officials also identified the two victims who died in the attack as 21-year-old Mayci Breaux and 33-year-old Jillian Johnson, according to Acadiana television station KATC. Of the nine people injured in the attack, two have been released from the hospital and one remains in critical condition, according to police.
Correction: This post has originally misspelled part of John Russel Houser’s name.
