The man who entered a Target store in Omaha, Nebraska, on January 31, 2023, and opened fire with an AR-15 rifle has been identified as Joseph Jones. He was shot dead by cops and no one else was injured in the incident, police said.

“Investigators have notified the suspect’s next of kin. He has been identified as Joseph Jones, 32, of suburban Omaha,” Omaha police said in a press release on February 1, 2023. They also released photos in which Jones can be holding the rifle inside the Target store.

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Who was Joseph Jones?

Joseph Jones purchased the AR-15 rifle at Cabela’s four days before the Target shooting incident. On January 31, cops responded to the scene after receiving reports of an active shooter.

The responding officers confronted Jones before shooting him. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

“The first arriving officers went into the building, confronted the suspect and shot him dead,” Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said during a press briefing after the incident.

Preliminary reports suggested that the gunman had entered the store with the refile and fired “multiple rounds.” No victims were found inside the store.

Police had initially said the suspect was a white male who was estimated to be in his 30s.

Larry Derksen, Jr., the uncle of the gunman, told KETV that his nephew was troubled. He said his family had repeatedly called law enforcement after finding guns in his Gretna-area home.

“I agonize over what I could have done different. I’ve called the police, have disarmed him. I’ve called mental facilities. I begged with people. And Joey was not rational,” Derksen said in an interview with KETV NewsWatch 7.