Security Guard Who Found Las Vegas Shooter Breaks His Silence on ‘Ellen’
Las Vegas security guard Jesus Campos has been hailed a hero for his role in stopping the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting. After canceling several interviews, Campos broke his silence on Ellen on Wednesday (Oct. 18), recounting that horrific night.
Campos, who was shot in the leg by the gunman, was joined by his colleague Stephen Schuck for the eight-minute segment. The guard detailed his movement on Oct. 1 that led him to the gunman's 32nd floor hotel room at the of Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.
As he recalls, at first, he thought he heard the sound of drilling and work being done on the hotel, but as he got closer he learned he was very wrong.
“I’m walking down [the hallway] and I believe that’s what caught the shooter’s attention,” Campos tells DeGeneres, explaining that he was on duty patrolling the stairwells when he noticed that the stair access door to the 32nd floor was blocked off. “As I was walking down I heard rapid fire and at first I took cover. I felt a burning sensation. I went to go lift my pant leg up and I saw the blood. That’s when I called it in on my radio, that shots had been fired.”
Building engineer Schuck arrived moments later to find Campos wounded. As he approached, Campos yelled from across the hallway that he needed to take cover.
“I saw Jesus and I started to hear shooting. At the time I didn’t know it was shooting, I thought it was a jackhammer,” Schuck says. “That’s when Jesus, he leaned out and he said, ‘Take cover! Take cover!’ Within milliseconds, if he didn’t say that, I would’ve got hit.”
The two men proved to be heroes that night, making sure everyone on the 32nd floor remained in their hotel rooms until police arrived. The shooter would go on to kill 58 concert-goers who were watching Jason Aldean perform at Route 91 Festival across the street from the hotel, before shooting himself.
Jason Aldean's Defiant Return to the Stage After Las Vegas Massacre
Photos From the Route 91 Shooting Show Kindness Amidst Chaos