Police have identified the suspect who on Friday night fatally shot singer Christina Grimmie, a former contestant on NBC's The Voice, while she was signing autographs after a concert in Orlando.
Kevin Loibl, 27, traveled to the concert venue specifically to shoot her, Orlando police said Saturday.
Man who shot and killed Christina Grimmie @TheRealGrimmie is Kevin James Loibl DOB 03/10/1989
Orlando Police Chief John Mina said during a press conference Saturday morning that officers received a call about gunshots around 10:30 p.m. Friday at the Plaza Live venue, and responded within two minutes. When they arrived, they found that two people had been killed, including Grimmie.
Several witnesses told police that Loibl had approached 22-year-old Grimmie and shot her. Grimmie's brother, Marcus, instantly tackled him, and Loibl killed himself in the midst of the scuffle.
Police said the 27-year-old had no known ties to Grimmie and traveled to Orlando from his home in St. Petersburg to commit the crime.
"He ... had plans to travel back to where he came from," Mina told reporters.
According to a Tampa Bay Times 2010 obituary for his mother, Loibl has a father and one brother.
"It appears that he traveled here to commit this crime," Mina added.
Detectives are looking at his phone and computer and hope to identify a motive. His name will be released later
The police chief did not elaborate on Loibl's mode of transportation to the concert venue, but said that he did not drive there himself.
Mina added that Loibl had been carrying two loaded, small-caliber handguns with two additional magazines and a large hunting knife when he entered the venue and shot Grimmie. Mina did not know if he attended the full concert.
Plaza Live did not employ armed security guards for Grimmie's concert, nor were there any metal detectors inside.
"This isn't a crowd that you would suspect would be carrying guns into an event like this," Mina said.
Investigators are currently looking through Loibl's phone and computer searching for a motive, Mina said, adding that he did not know if he had previously tried to contact Grimmie.
. @ChiefJohnMina We know people want answers and our detectives are working all leads at this time.
Grimmie competed on the sixth season of NBC's The Voice in 2014. She won third place in the competition.
Grimmie rose to fame with the help of a strong YouTube following. Her handle was zeldaxlove64.
Police announced her death early Saturday morning on Twitter.
"With deep regret, we have confirmed Christina Grimmie, @TheRealGrimmie has died from her injuries," Orlando police tweeted.
Grimmie had been performing with the band Before You Exit at the Plaza Live and stayed to sign autographs after the show.
"It is with a heavy heart that we can confirm that Christina has passed and went home to be with the Lord," her spokeswoman, Heather Weiss, said in a statement. "She was shot at her show in Orlando and, unfortunately, didn't survive the gun shot wounds. We ask at this time that you respect the privacy of her family and friends in their time of mourning."
In a post on Twitter, Before You Exit, the band Grimmie had been playing with before she was shot, said "words fail to describe how much Christina means to all of us."
Today we lost an angel, sister, and a beloved friend. #RipChristina
Earlier Friday, Grimmie posted a video telling her fans to come see her in Orlando.
ORLANDO!! Come out to the show tonight at the Plaza Live! Starts at 7:30!ð
A tweet from The Voice's account on Friday night before she was declared dead said she was a "loved member."
We are heartbroken. @TheRealGrimmie is a loved member of our family. Our thoughts are with her and her family. #PrayForChristina
The show later tweeted that a "beautiful soul" was lost.
There are no words. We lost a beautiful soul with an amazing voice. Our hearts go out to the friends, fans and family of @TheRealGrimmie.
Adam Levine, her coach on The Voice, said on Instagram he was "sad, shocked, and confused" by the shooting.
Demi Lovato tweeted this after the shooting:
Praying so hard for Christina Grimmie ðð¼ðð¼ðð¼ please pray for her
On Facebook, the Plaza Live said staff were "deeply saddened by the tragic events," adding that all events at the venue were suspended until further notice.
UPDATE
The age of the suspect has been updated to 27 from 21 based on a corrected press release from Orlando police.