The man who attacked an Antioch, Tenn., movie theater with pepper spray and a hatchet while brandishing a handgun Wednesday has been identified as 29-year-old Vincente David Montano, of Nashville. He was killed by Metro Nashville SWAT officers when he tried to leave the theater and pointed a handgun at them. The gun was later determined to be an airsoft pistol.
Montana was arrested in Murfreesboro in 2004 for assault and resisting arrest, according to officials. He was known to have psychiatric issues, and he had allegedly been committed four times, twice in 2004 to TriStar Centennial Parthenon Pavilion Mental Health Clinic in Nashville and twice in 2007 to a different facility.
Montano was allegedly reported missing Monday, and officials said his mother made that report when she couldn’t get in contact with him, WTVF News reports.
In the report, his mother told police Montano had been diagnosed by a Murfreesboro doctor with paranoid schizophrenia in April 2006, and she also said she had not seen Montano since March 2013.
Authorities say two women, ages 53 and 17, were doused in the face with pepper spray by Montano. Emergency crews said they were treated and released.
The suspect also heavily sprayed chemicals inside the theater, forcing officials to enter the theater with gas masks.
Another victim, a 58-year-old male identified only as Steven, had a wound to his shoulder, possibly caused by the hatchet Montano carried during the attack. He was treated for non-life threatening injuries.
Steven also gave a brief statement thanking all of those who responded and helped out, as well as asking for the public to respect his family's privacy.
Although the imminent shooting threat was believed to be over, authorities said the gunman had two backpacks, one on him and another he had left inside. Crews responded to determine the contents of the bags and any dangers that may be involved.
The bomb squad was uncomfortable with what they saw inside the backpack the suspect was wearing. They used a robot to detonate it and determined it contained a "hoax device" with no danger involved.
