The Orlando Police Department has released a heartbreaking new photo from the night Christina Grimmie died. Taken from inside the Florida venue where The Voice star last performed, it shows that her killer had attended the concert that night.
In June, Grimmie was shot and killed outside of the The Plaza Live by a fan named Kevin Loibl. The 27-year-old Best Buy employee had reportedly traveled from his home in St. Petersburg, FL, to the Orlando show to confront her. After being tackled by Grimmie's brother, Mark, Loibl shot Grimmie and killed himself.
According to Cosmopolitan, in this latest image, he can be seen standing at the back of the venue watching Grimmie perform moments before opening fire. He is wearing a red flannel shirt, black jeans, and a black baseball cap.
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In an interview with the Orlando Sentinel, Mark Grimmie said he remembered seeing the shooter in line, because he had looked much older than the rest of the fans. However, Mark thought nothing of it, because his sister "never judged anyone, so it didn’t matter what someone looked like or if they acted weirdly, she just had this way with people."
“Everyone loved her," Mark said, "and we literally never had a problem with any fan. Nothing.”
The motive for killing Grimmie is still unknown, but in the Orlando Sentinel article, Cory Dennington, a friend of the killer, says he was drawn to the YouTube star because of her Christian faith.
"He was impressed that she was a Christian and he told me that she changed him," Dennington said. "Like she helped him see the world in a different way and that...if there is a God, he sees it in her.”
Grimmie's family recently thanked fans for all of their support over the past six months, releasing a teaser for a new song, "Invisible." It will be released on February 14.