Buffalo shooting: Gunman pleads guilty to racist massacre in supermarket

Payton Gendron faces automatic life sentence after killing 10 black shoppers in New York

Powered by automated translation

The gunman who killed 10 shoppers during a racially motivated massacre at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, pleaded guilty on Monday to murder and domestic terrorism charges.

Payton Gendron, 19, entered the plea in a court a short distance from Tops Friendly Market, where in May he used an AR-15-style rifle and body armour to carry out the attack.

Gendron admitted all charges including murder, murder as a hate crime and hate-motivated domestic terrorism. He also pleaded guilty to wounding three people who survived the May shooting.

He faces an automatic sentence of life in prison.

He had been indicted on 25 counts, including 10 first-degree murder charges and 10 counts of second-degree murder as hate crimes. He was also indicted on one count of domestic terrorism inspired by hate.

Those killed in the May shooting ranged in age from 32 to 86.

He previously pleaded not guilty to separate federal hate crime charges that could result in a death sentence if convicted. The Justice Department has not yet indicated if it will seek capital punishment.

Gendron, who live-streamed the incident, said in documents before the shooting that he had decided to attack the store because it was in a predominantly black neighbourhood.

Biden chokes up while listing names of Buffalo shooting victims

Biden chokes up while listing names of Buffalo shooting victims

He surrendered when he was confronted by police as he left the supermarket. Authorities said he had planned to attack other stores had he not been caught.

The attack came during a stretch of violence in which high-profile mass shootings shook the US.

Less than two weeks earlier, a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at a primary school in Uvalde, Texas.

And seven people were killed during an Independence Day parade in Highland Park, Illinois, on July 4.

Relatives of the victims and survivors of the shootings have called on Congress to address gun violence.

US President Joe Biden in July signed a bipartisan gun control bill, the first in decades, that includes provisions to help states keep guns out of the hands of people believed to be dangerous.

It also cracks down on gun sales to those convicted of domestic violence.

After recent shootings in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Chesapeake, Virginia, Mr Biden has again called for a national ban on assault weapons.

Agencies contributed to this report

Updated: November 29, 2022, 10:46 AM