DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — As a Saturday turned into a Sunday, Connor Betts walked down Fifth Street in the Oregon District where he killed nine people and injured 27 on August 4, 2019.
The 24-year-old arrived at the Oregon District with his sister and a companion around 11 p.m. Saturday, August 3. The three entered Blind Bob’s together, but the shooter left alone just after midnight.
After spending nearly 30 minutes at Ned Peppers, Betts traveled back to his car in the Thai 9 parking lot where he put on a hoodie sweatshirt and a large backpack believed to contain body armor and an semi-automatic riffle.
Minutes later, mayhem broke out in the Oregon District. Betts walked into the alley next to Blind Bob’s and began shooting.
“We looked at each and asked “Is that fireworks? Is that a drive by? What’s going on?” Retired Dayton Police Sergeant W. Chad Knight remembered. “By the time we got those words out, the second round of volley of gunfire began and it didn’t stop until we stopped him.”
Most of the six officers on duty that night were relative newcomers to the department, but all said their instinct was to stop the threat as quickly as possible.
“When I first realized they were shots, I ran up in the street to get the best angle,” Dayton Police Officer Brian Rolfes said. “I saw the muzzle flashes down by Blind Bob’s and he was actively walking across the street where I saw people running and I knew people were in danger.”
32 seconds after the gunfire began, Betts was shot and killed by six Dayton police officers just as he attempted to enter Ned Peppers.
“In an instant you see bullets hit the ground, smoke flying up, bullets hitting people, people falling, people running everywhere,” Dayton Police Officer Jeremy Campbell said. “I just focused in, this hypervigilance on him, and that’s when I decided to shoot.”
The six Dayton police officers were praised as heroes and awarded the Medal of Valor by then-President Donald Trump.
DATV and the Dayton Police Department contributed to the video above.
