Suspect in Beyond Wonderland shooting is active US Army member

The main suspect in the shooting at Beyond Wonderland festival is an active member of the US Army, it has been revealed.

At the weekend (June 17), a shooting took place at a campground near to the Washington EDM festival, resulting in two deaths.

The festival was being held at the Gorge Amphitheatre in Washington when police were alerted to an “active shooter” in the nearby campground on Saturday, where many festival attendees were due to stay, while artists were performing at the festival.

A police conference later in the evening reported that officers had “pursued (and) closed-in on the suspect” but they continued to “fire randomly into the crowd” before being apprehended (via Variety).

Now, local news outlet ABC7 reports that the suspect has been confirmed as 26-year-old James M. Kelly, an active member of the US Army based at Joint Base Lewis McCord in Washington state.

Kelly is being held on two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of first-degree assault and one count of first-degree assault domestic violence.

After the festival, Insomniac Events founder and CEO Pasquale Rotella issued a statement following the tragic events.

“On behalf of the entire Insomniac family, we extend our heartfelt thoughts and condolences to the family, friends and loved ones of the victims. The loss of two lives, as well as the injuries sustained by others, is an incredibly heartbreaking tragedy,” Rotella started his statement.

“Given the various accounts circulating, I would like to provide an update based on the information currently available,” he wrote.

“We know that the shooting took place in the furthest campground from The Gorge Amphitheatre, which is designated for overflow camping and located a half mile outside the perimeter of the main festival grounds. It is our understanding that the incident stemmed from an isolated situation that escalated, leading the assailant to flee the area. An officer-involved shooting then occurred to neutralise the threat”.

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