BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The gunman who killed 10 people Saturday in a mass shooting at the Jefferson Avenue Tops Markets location was live-streaming on the internet, authorities said in a press conference.
Live-streaming service Twitch has confirmed the shooter, identified in court as Payton Gendron, used the service to broadcast the incident.
Twitch sent the following to News 4:
We are devastated to hear about the shooting that took place this afternoon in Buffalo, New York. Our hearts go out to the community impacted by this tragedy. Twitch has a zero-tolerance policy against violence of any kind and works swiftly to respond to all incidents. The user has been indefinitely suspended from our service, and we are taking all appropriate action, including monitoring for any accounts rebroadcasting this content.”
Twitch
Governor Hochul condemned the live-streaming of the incident and demanded vigilance on the part of social media platforms when it comes to monitoring content.
A Twitch spokesperson said teams are “vigorously monitoring” to ensure the live broadcast or related content is not being re-streamed and that the service is cooperating with law enforcement.
The spokesperson also said Twitch is not aware of any VODs, or videos on demand, allowing users to access the broadcast and said the stream was removed less than two minutes after the violence started.