Law enforcement officials told the AP news agency.
Details on how many additional people are shot at Top Friendly Markets and their conditions are not immediately available. The two officials were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter and did so on condition of anonymity.
Investigators believe the man may have been live-streaming the shooting and are looking into whether he posted a manifesto online, the official said. The official warned that the investigation is in the preliminary stages and that authorities have yet to establish a clear motive, but are investigating whether the shooting was racially motivated.
The supermarket is located in a predominantly Black residential area about 3 miles (5 km) north of downtown Buffalo. The surrounding area is mostly residential, with a Family Dollar store and fire station near the store.
Buffalo police confirmed the shooter was in custody in a tweet, but did not identify a suspect. Police officials and a spokesperson for the supermarket chain did not immediately respond to messages from the AP seeking comment.
Witnesses said the gunman was wearing military-style clothing next to body armor, one of the officials said
Braedyn Kephart and Shane Hill, both 20, pulled into the parking lot just as the shooter was walking out. They describe him as a white male in his late or early twenties, full athletic, wearing a black helmet and what appears to be a rifle.
“He was standing there with the gun to his chin. We were like what the hell is going on? Why is this kid holding a gun to his face? ”
Police closed the door from the compound, long queues were lined up by spectators, and policemen in yellow vests surrounded the parking lot. Mayor Byron Brown and Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz were on the scene Saturday afternoon, gathered in a parking lot across from the Tops store, and are expected to speak to the media.
More than two hours into the shooting, Erica Pugh-Mathews was waiting outside the store, behind the police tape.
“We want to know the condition of my aunt, my mother’s sister. She was there with her fiancé, they separated and went to different paths,” she said. A bullet barely hit him. He was able to hide in a freezer but he couldn’t get to my aunt and didn’t know where she was. We just want from either way if she’s okay. ”
Governor Kathy Hochul tweeted that she is “closely monitoring the shooting at a grocery store in Buffalo,” her hometown. She said state officials have offered to help local governments. The Erie County Sheriff’s Office said on social media that it has ordered all staff present to assist Buffalo police.
Justice Department spokesman Anthony Coley said Attorney General Merrick Garland was briefed on the shooting.
The shooting comes just over a year after the March 2021 attack at a King Soopers grocery store in Boulder, Colorado, that left 10 people dead. Investigators have not released any information as to why they believe the man charged in that attack targeted the supermarket.
