Investigation launched into Buffalo mass shooting suspect reveals many missed ‘red flags’

Payton Gendron, the sole suspect in the case, showed clear signs of mental instability prior to going to the "Tops Friendly Market" and specifically targeting black people there with a semi-automatic rifle.

Gendron has pleaded not guilty so far to the charges of first-degree murder. If convicted, he will face life without parole.

The Commissioner of Police for Buffalo, Joseph Gramaglia, indicated that prosecutors are planning on dealing with this incident as a hate crime, saying "The evidence that we have uncovered so far makes no mistake this is an absolute racist hate crime that will be prosecuted as a hate crime," according to Reuters.

Reuters goes on to report that, "besides seeking a clearer understanding of the motives for Gendron's attack, authorities will focus on what could have been done to stop him, as details of the teenager's troubling behavior in high school and his online presence began to emerge."

Records further show that Gendron spent a day in a half in an institution being evaluated for mental health back in June 2021. He was, however, released back to the general public without further action having been taken.

It has also been reported that there is a manifesto circulating over the internet, which very possibly may have been authored by Gendron. The 180-page-long document references the "replacement theory" in which white people believe that they are victims of a demographic war with people of other skin colors.