“The Voice” singer Christina Grimmie shot dead in Orlando

By: Curtis Sindrey, & Associated Press –

Christina Grimmie performing at the Mod Club in Toronto on June 5, 2016 (Photo: Jaime Espinoza/Aesthetic Magazine)

Update: Orlando police have released the name and a picture of the man who killed The Voice star Christina Grimmie. Kevin James Loibl, 27, killed the rising singer-songwriter, according to a tweet from the Orlando Police Department.

Police say Loibl traveled from St. Petersburg, Florida, to Orlando’s Plaza Live venue, where he shot Grimmie, who was meeting fans following a performance with the band Before You Exit on June 10th. Grimmie’s brother tackled him, and Loibl then fatally shot himself.

At a press conference on Saturday, Orlando Police Chief John Mina said that Loibl had two handguns, two loaded magazines and a hunting knife on him when he shot Grimmie. The killer did not appear to know Grimmie personally and “may have been a deranged fan,” he said.

OPD can confirm 27 year old Kevin James Loibl, suspect who shot Christina Grimmie, is from St Petersburg, FL pic.twitter.com/iN6RUi3VRx

— Orlando Police (@OrlandoPolice) June 11, 2016

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“The Voice” star Christina Grimmie was shot dead Friday after performing with Before You Exit at The Plaza Live in Orlando.

The 22-year-old singer, who had performed at Toronto’s Mod Club Theatre on June 5th, was shot as she signed autographs for fans at a merchandise table.

A publicist for Grimmie, Heather Walsh, said in an email early on Saturday that “we can confirm that Christina has passed and went home to be with the Lord”. The Orlando police department also confirmed on its official Twitter page that Grimmie had died.

Grimmie’s brother immediately tackled the gunman, who then shot and killed himself during the struggle, police said. The gunman was not identified, and police have not said why he attacked the singer. An investigation is ongoing, but police credited the singer’s brother with preventing the gunman from hurting others.

Sgt. Wanda Miglio said during a news conference after the shooting that about 60 to 100 people were in attendance, though only a handful remained when the shooting happened.

Miglio said she did not know what security was like at the venue, or how the shooter got two guns inside. She also said she did not know if off-duty officers were working the concert.

“It was just a casual event,” she said.

Grimmie had posted a video of herself shortly before the concert was scheduled to begin, encouraging fans to come see her perform.

Grimmie, a New Jersey native, finished third during season six of NBC’s “The Voice” in 2014, competing on the team of Maroon 5 star Adam Levine. She began amassing a following on YouTube as a teenager, gripping online viewers with her powerful renditions of hit songs. Her videos on YouTube have garnered millions of views.

Levine posted a photo of himself with Ms. Grimmie on Instagram, commenting before her death was confirmed: “I’m sad, shocked and confused. We love you so much Grimmie. We are all praying hard that you can pull through this…this just isn’t fair.”

When reports of Ms. Grimmie’s death first surfaced, #PrayforChristina was the top trending hashtag on Twitter. After her death was confirmed, #RIPChristina became the top trending hashtag as Grimmie’s fans took to social media to express an outpouring of grief.

“The Voice” paid tribute to Grimmie on its official Twitter page: “There are no words. We lost a beautiful soul with an amazing voice.”

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported in 2014 that Grimmie moved to Los Angeles in 2012 after joining Selena Gomez on tour to focus on her singing career.

“I’m done being surprised by cool things she does. She’s very talented and she’s worked incredibly hard—it’s a dangerous combination,” her brother Mark Grimmie told the newspaper at the time.