According to media reports, the employee, identified as Omar Thornton, was called in to Hartford Distributors for a disciplinary meeting the morning of Aug. 3. The Associated Press reported that a union official claimed Thornton had been caught on tape stealing beer from the company.
It was not immediately clear whether the meeting had occurred before the shooting began. Some media reports indicated that the disciplinary meeting could have resulted in Thornton’s termination from the company, or that he may have been asked to resign.
Thornton was a driver for Hartford Distributors and a member of the Teamsters Union. The Associated Press reported that Thornton, who was black, had complained of racial harassment at work and said his superiors had done nothing to address the situation.
Several dozen employees were in the warehouse at the time of the shooting. In addition to the dead, at least two employees were wounded. The names of the victims have not yet been released.