Disturbing letters written by the friend of the deadliest mass shooter in US history have provided a glimpse into the gunman’s horrifying psyche leading up to the carnage.
Months before Stephen Paddock killed 60 people and injured more than 860 when he opened fire at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas in 2017, his ex-con Jim Nixon, 75, begged him not to “shoot or kill innocent people.” kill’.
Handwritten letters to the killer, which were released by the police at the request of the police Las Vegas Review Journalshowing Nixon begging his old friend not to continue with threats to commit the massacre.
“I can find someone for you to help you,” he wrote. “Please don’t shoot or hurt people who didn’t hurt you.
“I’m worried (sic) about the way you talk and think you’re about to do something really bad. Steve, please, please don’t do what I think you’re going to do.’
Stephen Paddock became the deadliest mass shooter in US history when he opened fire on concertgoers in Las Vegas from his hotel room in 2017, killing 60 and injuring more than 860
The letters, which DailyMail.com has requested access to, were found in late November 2017 by the owners of an abandoned office building in Mesquite, Texas, where Paddock owned property before the murders.
Nixon told CNN that he exchanged letters with Paddock several times a year, which revealed his concern about his friend’s disturbing mentality in the years before his “plan.”
In one of the August 2014 ominous letters, Nixon wrote, “You said you would be ready in three years and your plan would appear in Nevada, California, Illinois, Texas, New York and other cities… What are you doing mean?” ?’
Investigators found that Paddock had amassed a huge stash of firearms leading up to the shooting, taking many to his hotel room in Mandalay before firing more than 1,000 rounds at concertgoers below.
His disturbing spree of spending was alluded to by Nixon in another May 2, 2017, letter, in which he wrote, “You must (sic) go hunting with all those guns you’re stocking.”
Three weeks later, in another letter revealed by the Las Vegas outlet, Nixon again unsuccessfully begged Paddock to seek help before continuing with his sinister threats.
“You are a good person and I want you to know that I am concerned about you and your well-being,” he said.
“I believe you are lying to me and you are going to hurt or kill someone. You sound like a real madman on the phone tonight.’
Paddock was a retired postal worker, accountant and real estate investor who was a well-known high-stakes gambler. He was the son of a notorious “psychopath” bank robber who was once on the FBI’s most wanted list.
Nixon said he and Paddock exchanged numerous letters in the years leading up to the massacre. Pictured is a mock-up of the handwritten correspondence
Paddock fired more than 1,000 bullets in an 11-minute shootout from his hotel room in Mandalay Bay
Paddock had numerous firearms stored in his 32nd floor hotel room, pictured, leading up to the massacre
Concertgoers pictured crying in the aftermath of the October 2017 Route 91 Harvest music festival shooting
Nixon’s fear of Paddock’s mental state is evident in the letters, including one in which he wrote, “Remember that you must answer to Almighty God for your earthly crimes.”
“My friend, it sounds like you are going to kill or murder someone or some people,” he wrote in another letter from June 2017.
“Please, whatever it is, I’d love to talk to you about it and we can discuss it. Please don’t act like a fool.’
Nixon, a disabled Vietnam War veteran who was reportedly imprisoned decades ago for tax fraud, said he had met Paddock more than 10 years before the shooting. Paddock was set to stay at Nixon’s California homes, and when the veteran moved to Las Vegas, the two reportedly went fishing together in Lake Mead.
However, no definitive motive has ever been given for Paddock’s horrific carnage, Nixon said CNN that he believed his former friend was “embittered by the system” and “started talking a lot about death.”
Although he said he became increasingly concerned when Paddock talked about “going post,” Nixon never notified authorities because he “didn’t know (Paddock) was going to do anything” and “couldn’t get his mind to read’.
Nixon added that he initially did not believe reports identifying Paddock as the killer when the crime shocked the nation, saying he thought “Damn that fool” when he was officially confirmed as the shooter.
Paddock, right, was the son of a notorious bank robber who was once on the FBI’s most wanted list. He is pictured with his brother Eric, on the left
The massacre shocked the nation more than five years ago. Pictured: Mourners gather for a candlelight vigil a week after the mass shooting
In January 2019, more than a year after the shooting, the FBI released a report detailing their investigation into his motive, finding “no single or apparent motivating factor.”
According to the document, prepared by the agency’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, Paddock “went to great lengths to keep his thoughts private, and that extended to his final thoughts on this mass murder.”
The FBI reiterated that he acted alone when he showered concertgoers with gunfire in an 11-minute shooting spree, claiming he was not motivated by religious, social or political grudges.
The report adds that he may have been inspired by his father, notorious bank robber Benjamin Hoskins Paddock, who entered the FBI’s top ten most wanted list in 1968.
“Paddock’s father created a facade to disguise his true criminal identity and conceal his diagnosed psychopathic history, eventually achieving significant criminal notoriety,” the report concluded.
FBI files released this year also revealed that he lost $1.5 million gambling in the weeks before he carried out the mass shooting, which a fellow gambler said could have easily “snarled” the shooter.