U.S. prosecutors say the suspect in a deadly shooting spree in the northern U.S. state of Michigan admitted to carrying out the attacks that killed six people.
Prosecutors say Jason Dalton, a 45-year-old Uber driver who had no previous criminal record, made the confession during police questioning. Dalton was charged Monday with six counts of murder along with 10 other assault and firearms offenses.
A judge denied bail to Dalton on Monday when he appeared briefly in court. Dalton has not yet entered a formal plea and will get a court-appointed attorney.
Investigators are searching for a motive for the attack. Prosecutors say the victims were apparently chosen at random, with none of them seemingly having a connection to the shooter or each other.
As details of the latest U.S. mass shooting emerged, President Barack Obama told U.S. governors visiting the White House, that "clearly we've got to do more" to prevent gun violence.
Authorities arrested Dalton Sunday in connection with the shootings on Saturday around the city of Kalamazoo, Michigan. Two others were wounded in the incident.
Getting said that someone randomly killing people for no reason is "every community's nightmare."
Dalton worked for the ride hailing service Uber. The company's chief security officer, Joe Sullivan, issued a statement saying Uber is "horrified and heartbroken at the senseless violence," and has offered to help investigators in any way possible.
One of Dalton's passengers, Matt Mellen, told a local television station that he hailed a ride with Dalton Saturday afternoon and that less than a kilometer into the trip Dalton got a phone call. Mellen said that after Dalton hung up, he began driving erratically, driving through stop signs and sideswiping other cars. When Dalton finally stopped, Mellen said he jumped out of the car and called police.
Authorities say the shootings began at an apartment complex where a woman was seriously wounded when shot multiple times. Hours later, the gunman killed a father and son looking at vehicles at a car dealership.
Minutes after that, five people were shot in a parking lot at a restaurant. Four of them died. A 14-year-old girl, originally reported as dead, was hospitalized with serious injuries.
Police say they have not identified a motive for the shootings.
