James Holmes, the alleged gunman who shot 71 people during the Batman 'Dark Knight Rises' premiere in Aurora, Colorado, told police he was "the Joker" as they interrogated him about the massacre. The 24-year-old had reportedly dyed hair and beard red before he stepped into the crowded cinema, hurled a tear gas grenade, and opened fire.
12 people died in the incident, while 59 were injured, though Holmes calmly walked out into the parking lot where he surrendered to officers, identifying himself as The Joker, reports the UK's Daily Telegraph. Raymond Kelly, the Commissioner of the New York Police Department said, "It clearly looks like a deranged individual.He had his hair painted red, he said he was 'The Joker', obviously the 'enemy' of Batman". The late Heath Ledger turned in an Oscar winning performance in 2008's 'The Dark Knight', playing a murderous and terrifying version of the Batman villain. The massacre in Colorado began at 12.39am when the gunman - wearing a bullet proof helmet - entered through a fire door at the front of the multiplex's theatre 9. He carried a Remington 12 gauge shotgun, an AR15 assault rifle and two .40 calibre Glock handguns. Police reportedly arrived within "a minute and a half" of the start of the attack, though not before Holmes had allegedly fired dozens of rounds, killing a three month old child in the process. Speaking to CNN, Jessica Seeger, 22, said, "He pointed the gun at my face. I was like a deer in the headlights. I panicked. I thought, 'I'm going to die if I don't do something.I just saw dead bodies everywhere".
TMZ.com has since reported that a woman named Diana logged into the Match.com relationships website on Friday to discover that it was suggesting she hook up with James Holmes - the same man who is accused of the massacre. Though the website has now taken down the profile, screenshots of his details reveal that his favorite movie is 'Dumb and Dumber', while his favorite book is 'Where's Waldo?'. As for his political views, Holmes describes himself as "middle of the road" and notes, "I spend a lot of time thinking about the future".