The body of coward Stephen Paddock — the perpetrator of the bloody Oct. 1 massacre that rocked the world — lies sprawled on the carpet of Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay Hotel, his 32nd floor lair and sniper’s nest! [GRAPHIC IMAGE FOLLOWS…]
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“
This was not just a mass murder,” one criminal profiler said. “This was a murder/suicide by someone who didn’t think he would have the guts to shoot himself and wanted the cops to do it for him."
Photo credit: Getty Images
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After unloading his weapons on innocent victims attending an outdoor concert — and as the Las Vegas SWAT team stormed the hotel — Paddock "knew he was doomed at this point and completed his ‘mission,’" a source explained, "turning the gun on himself and blowing his brains out.”
Photo credit: Files
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“This individual … didn’t leave the sort of immediate thumbprints you find on these kinds of attacks,” said a stumped FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, adding the lack of motive was a “surprise.”
Photo credit: Files
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But The ENQUIRER has learned chilling new details about what drove the lonely retiree, 64, to commit his unspeakable spree of terror: a twisted killing cult.
Photo credit: Files
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“If you look at other death cults, what propels people to join is a search for belonging to a movement larger than oneself,” Dmitri Oster, a New York–based clinician and criminal profiler, told The ENQUIRER.
Photo credit: Getty Images
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“Paddock was isolated, living in a retirement community, without many family or social ties. These are the sort of people who fall victim to cults," said Oster. “It doesn’t explain the atrocities, but if Paddock fell under the sway of a cult or charismatic leader, then he would fall victim to that leader’s agenda.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
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A solitary gambling addict with no criminal history and few social or family connections, Paddock appeared to be a mystery even to his girlfriend
Marilou Danley, who told the FBI she didn’t know of his plans, and that he'd bought her a cheap ticket to the Philippines because he wanted to “dump” her.
Photo credit: Files
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Dr. George Simon, a psychologist and author of “In Sheep’s Clothing,” told The ENQUIRER Paddock’s flaws — especially his gambling — made him easy pickings for a cult leader.
Photo credit: Files
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“They target these folks ... people who are looking for ways to redeem themselves, and would find it too painful to admit their own character defects,” said Dr. Simon. “Instead, they get to blame a scapegoat — some evil entity, society or empire — that the group leader serves up.
Photo credit: Getty Images
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"He gets to think of himself not as a wretch," Simon continued, "but as a hero, without having to examine his poor behavior.” Dr. Melissa Hamilton, an ex-cop turned criminologist at the University of Surrey in England, agreed.
Photo credit: Files
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“Paddock may have reached out to a cult-like group, and
they decided to use him as a pawn," Dr. Hamilton told The ENQUIRER. "Or he was part of such a group, and they identified him as the person they could use to carry out such an act.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
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And numerous clues suggest the lunatic did not act alone. The ENQUIRER has obtained a receipt for room service Paddock ordered on Sept. 27 — four days before the Oct. 1 massacre. The receipt listed the table number as Paddock’s room number, his name is on the bottom, and it indicates two guests were served.
Photo credit: Getty Images
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The total bill was $84.33 for a hamburger, a bagel with cream cheese, potato soup, bottled water and two sodas. Even stranger, Paddock wired his room with video cameras. After the killings, images from inside the room were leaked, including a disturbing one of Paddock after he shot himself.
Photo credit: Getty Images
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Former LAPD lawman Henderson Cooper told The ENQUIRER: “It’s highly unlikely police would be leakin gthis stuff, especially on such a high-profile case.” Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV) and Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo are shown here briefing reporters two days after the attack.
Photo credit: Getty Images
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Photo credit: Getty Images
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“Cults are closed societies,” he said, as mourning continued in Las Vegas. “Even in the days of social media, there are cults that do a great job of protecting and shielding their members from the outside world. Paddock’s involvement in one would help explain why he wasn’t on the radar of law enforcement.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
“
This was not just a mass murder,” one criminal profiler said. “This was a murder/suicide by someone who didn’t think he would have the guts to shoot himself and wanted the cops to do it for him."
Photo credit: Getty Images
After unloading his weapons on innocent victims attending an outdoor concert — and as the Las Vegas SWAT team stormed the hotel — Paddock "knew he was doomed at this point and completed his ‘mission,’" a source explained, "turning the gun on himself and blowing his brains out.”
“This individual … didn’t leave the sort of immediate thumbprints you find on these kinds of attacks,” said a stumped FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, adding the lack of motive was a “surprise.”
But The ENQUIRER has learned chilling new details about what drove the lonely retiree, 64, to commit his unspeakable spree of terror: a twisted killing cult.
“If you look at other death cults, what propels people to join is a search for belonging to a movement larger than oneself,” Dmitri Oster, a New York–based clinician and criminal profiler, told The ENQUIRER.
Photo credit: Getty Images
“Paddock was isolated, living in a retirement community, without many family or social ties. These are the sort of people who fall victim to cults," said Oster. “It doesn’t explain the atrocities, but if Paddock fell under the sway of a cult or charismatic leader, then he would fall victim to that leader’s agenda.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
A solitary gambling addict with no criminal history and few social or family connections, Paddock appeared to be a mystery even to his girlfriend
Marilou Danley, who told the FBI she didn’t know of his plans, and that he'd bought her a cheap ticket to the Philippines because he wanted to “dump” her.
Dr. George Simon, a psychologist and author of “In Sheep’s Clothing,” told The ENQUIRER Paddock’s flaws — especially his gambling — made him easy pickings for a cult leader.
“They target these folks ... people who are looking for ways to redeem themselves, and would find it too painful to admit their own character defects,” said Dr. Simon. “Instead, they get to blame a scapegoat — some evil entity, society or empire — that the group leader serves up.
Photo credit: Getty Images
"He gets to think of himself not as a wretch," Simon continued, "but as a hero, without having to examine his poor behavior.” Dr. Melissa Hamilton, an ex-cop turned criminologist at the University of Surrey in England, agreed.
“Paddock may have reached out to a cult-like group, and
they decided to use him as a pawn," Dr. Hamilton told The ENQUIRER. "Or he was part of such a group, and they identified him as the person they could use to carry out such an act.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
And numerous clues suggest the lunatic did not act alone. The ENQUIRER has obtained a receipt for room service Paddock ordered on Sept. 27 — four days before the Oct. 1 massacre. The receipt listed the table number as Paddock’s room number, his name is on the bottom, and it indicates two guests were served.
Photo credit: Getty Images
The total bill was $84.33 for a hamburger, a bagel with cream cheese, potato soup, bottled water and two sodas. Even stranger, Paddock wired his room with video cameras. After the killings, images from inside the room were leaked, including a disturbing one of Paddock after he shot himself.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Former LAPD lawman Henderson Cooper told The ENQUIRER: “It’s highly unlikely police would be leakin gthis stuff, especially on such a high-profile case.” Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV) and Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo are shown here briefing reporters two days after the attack.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images
“Cults are closed societies,” he said, as mourning continued in Las Vegas. “Even in the days of social media, there are cults that do a great job of protecting and shielding their members from the outside world. Paddock’s involvement in one would help explain why he wasn’t on the radar of law enforcement.”
Photo credit: Getty Images