Suspect in Nashville Waffle House shooting had been arrested by United States Secret Service in July 2017 for being in a restricted area near the White House, Don Aaron of Nashville police says pic.twitter.com/m6fLGqKkm9
— NBC News (@NBCNews) April 22, 2018
A person suspected of killing four people at a Waffle House in Nashville early on Sunday was arrested by the Secret Service in 2017, according to Nashville police.
The suspected shooter, who is still at large, was arrested in July 2017 for being in a restricted area near the White House, said Don Aaron, a spokesman for the Nashville police, on Sunday.
Police suspect the shooter is Travis Reinking, 29, from Morton, Ill.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation announced on Sunday that Reinking has been added to the state’s Top Ten Most Wanted List.
Authorities are offering a $2,500 reward in exchange for information that leads to an arrest.
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Reinking got his Illinois firearm authorization revoked at the request of the FBI after his arrest in 2017, Aaron said.
His weapons, including the AR-15 reportedly used in the Waffle House shooting, were seized by authorities in 2017 after his arrest and, according to Aaron, later given to Reinking’s father, who has said he returned them to his son.
Two of the four firearms were found after the shooting; however, the other two are unaccounted for.
“Travis Reinking’s whereabouts are presently unknown. Searches are on by law enforcement throughout the area, including our federal partners,” Aaron said.
The suspected shooter pulled into the Waffle House parking lot around 3:19 a.m. and sat in his car for up to four minutes before using an assault-style rifle to fatally wound two people outside the restaurant, police said.
He then entered the restaurant and opened fire, shooting a total of six people. Two more people have died in the incident. A customer at Waffle House rushed the gunman, who then fled the scene, according to reports.