A lone gunman who opened fire in a crowded US movie theater killing two people was a drifter who tried to escape before turning the gun on himself, police said today.
Police identified the gunman as 59-year-old John Houser, a white man originally from Alabama.
He had been staying at a motel in Lafayette, Louisiana where authorities found glasses and wigs for disguises.
"He's kind of a drifter," police chief Jim Craft told reporters, adding that Houser acted alone.
Houser apparently tried to flee the theater after shooting 13 rounds from a single handgun, killing two white females aged 21 and 33, one of whom died in hospital, and injuring nine others before killing himself as police closed in.
"What happened is that the quick law enforcement response forced him back into the theater, at which time he shot himself," Craft said.
Louisiana state police chief Michael Edmonson said they were investigating Houser's motive, and had spoken to his friends and family.
In addition to the disguises, police said Houser had switched the license plate on his car, which was parked bear the theater exit.
More than 100 people were in the cinema when Houser began shooting indiscriminately into the audience about 30 minutes into a screening of "Trainwreck."
One person remains in critical condition in hospital, Craft said.
Houser has been in the southern city of about 125,000 people since early July, according to Craft.
Houser's apparent LinkedIn profile showed a varied career, with experience in investment management, real estate and stints as a bar owner.
Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal said it did not appear that the victims were targeted and said residents were coming to grips with the "random act of violence."
"There's never a good explanation. In this case, the explanation will be less than in other cases based on what they learned by talking to family members and processing that hotel room and car," Jindal said on CNN.
He praised a teacher who threw herself in front of the shower of bullets to protect her friend, also a teacher, and eventually pulled the fire alarm.
"The second teacher said the bullet was coming for her head if her friend hadn't jumped on top of her. She had the presence of mind to pull the fire alarm," said Jindal, who is also vying for the Republican presidential nomination
Jindal, who rushed to Lafayette after news of the shooting emerged, said it was not the right time to discuss gun control and that the focus should remain on the victims.
