The soldier suspected of gunning down three people before killing himself at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas was under psychiatric care but showed no signs of violence or suicidal tendencies, the secretary of the U.S. Army said on Thursday.
There was no motive given for the incident, which also left 16 wounded, although officials have so far ruled out terrorism in the second mass shooting at the base in five years.
The gunman, who had been treated for depression and anxiety, was yet to be officially named but security officials said preliminary information identified the gunman as Ivan Lopez.
U.S. Army Secretary John McHugh said the soldier, who joined the service in 2008, had served two tours of duty abroad, including four months in Iraq in 2011. He had no direct involvement in combat and suffered no wounds.
"He was undergoing a variety of treatment and diagnoses for mental health conditions, ranging from depression to anxiety to some sleep disturbance. He was prescribed a number of drugs to address those, including Ambien," McHugh told a U.S. Senate committee hearing.
"The background checks we have done thus far show no involvement with extremist organizations of any kind," he said.
McHugh said the soldier and his wife were from Puerto Rico and that he had served in the Puerto Rican national guard before joining the U.S. Army.
The suspect's wife was cooperating with law enforcement officers, a Federal Bureau of Investigation official said, according to CNN.
In a news conference late on Wednesday, Fort Hood commanding officer Lieutenant General Mark Milley said the shooter was undergoing evaluation for post-traumatic stress disorder.
The shooter had "self-reported" a traumatic brain injury after returning from Iraq but was never wounded in action, Milley said. He arrived in Fort Hood in February from another military installation.
At about 4:00 p.m. local time (2100 GMT) on Wednesday, the soldier went to two buildings on the base and opened fire before he was confronted by military police, Milley said.
The gunman then shot himself in the head with a .45-caliber pistol. Milley said law enforcement was looking into reports of an argument at the base ahead of the shooting.
REUTERS