Police say gunman in Virginia Walmart mass shooting was store employee

Authorities on Wednesday morning confirmed that the gunman in the mass shooting overnight at a Walmart in southeastern Virginia was a store employee.

The development was announced at a press conference by Chief Mark G. Solesky, of the Chesapeake Police Department.

Solesky also confirmed the unidentified shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot. 

He could not confirm reports that the incident occurred in a store break room, whether the shooter was a manager, as has been reported, and what sparked the shooting.

There's "no clear motive," Solesky said.

He said the first 911 call came at 10:16 p.m., police arrived two minutes later and that the crime scene was declared safe at 10: 20 p.m.

The Chesapeake, Virginia, store was filled with shoppers, including many buying for the Thanksgiving holiday, according to the Associated Press.

Four people are in area hospitals being treated for injured or wounds from the attack, Solesky also said.

"I am devastated by the senseless act of violence that took place late last night in our city," Mayor Rick W. West tweeted Wednesday morning from the city’s official account. “

The incident comes just days after another mass shooting in the U.S.

On Saturday night, five people were killed at an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Twenty-five others were reportedly injured, including 19 by gunfire.