Who is Benjamin Charles Jones? Walmart Shooting Suspect

Walmart mass shooting suspect Benjamin Charles Jones may have been at least partially inspired by a racially motivated violent extremist ideology, according to the FBI.

The 20-year-old is suspected of using a Hi-Point .45 caliber carbine to shoot four people at a Walmart in Beavercreek, near Dayton, Ohio, on November 20 before turning the gun on himself. Two of the victims are Black women, the others are a white man and a white woman, officials said.

Officers found Nazi flags during a search of his house in Dayton, according to court documents found by News Center 7 and reports in the New York Post.

Photos seen by Newsweek uploaded to what appears to be Jones’ Instagram account show three separate posts with a gun.

In one post, the suspected shooter shared a picture of him wearing a Metro Police cap at a shooting range. A different photo showed a gun and holster with the caption: “Best Christmas gift.”

Comments under the post seen by Newsweek indicate Jones had access to guns for years before the shooting.

One comment posted in January 2020 in response to a photo of a gun on Jones’ Instagram said that it wasn’t surprising because he had “an interest” in firearms. In another comment from the same time period, Jones himself wrote he was planning to use the gun for “personal/ home defense.”

A video posted in May 2023 to his Instagram story under the caption “mental illness” showed a meme that declared “me at night” alongside a video of a game involving a character firing a gun.

A statement from the FBI and Beavercreek Police Department officials said the gun used in the shooting was bought from a store in Dayton just two days before the Walmart incident. They are now investigating further to determine if any of the answers on the ATF Form 4473 needed for the purchase were inaccurate.

Newsweek has contacted Beavercreek Police Department to ask for more information on how the weapon was purchased and the background check investigated.

According to the New York Post, Jones went to a Christian online school and spent all his time at home. The outlet also reported he believed in right-wing conspiracy theories, including that the Holocaust did not happen, and had previously been admitted to hospital for mental-health evaluations.

Jones’ extreme ideology, identified by the FBI, refers to a “loosely organized movement of individuals and groups that espouse some combination of racist, antisemitic, xenophobic, Islamophobic, misogynistic, and homophobic ideology,” according to the RAND Corporation, a California-based nonprofit think tank.

The FBI statement added: “This investigation remains very active as the FBI thoroughly examines the attacker’s background, motive, connections, and online activity. Anyone with information regarding Benjamin Charles Jones is asked to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or online at tips.fbi.gov.”