In an interview with reporters, the brother of Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock described him as a very wealthy man who treated gambling as a full-time job.
In the days after the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, reporters have searched for more information on Paddock. This was the second interview with his brother.
“He gambled for 20-plus years successfully,” Eric Paddock said. ”It’s like a job to him. He did it mathematically; he did it because it was a way to have a fun life.”
Paddock, whom his brother called a “private guy” who “helped make me and my family wealthy,” didn’t have many friends, he said. But he said spending time with his brother could be enjoyable because of his wealth and the way the hotels and casinos pampered him.
“He was an independently wealthy, no-ties-attached guy,” Eric said. “If he wanted to get on a plane to Japan and have sushi tomorrow, he did that. Now, he’d probably have the casino pay for it by saying he’d go to a casino there, or something.”
He told the story of a time when the casino paid for thousands of dollars’ worth of sushi when Eric and his son visited, and Stephen only had to pay the tip.
“They comped him; he got lots of money in comps.”
He spoke of his brother’s special treatment at the hotels where he gambled. “He has the highest level of membership at these hotels,” he said. “If the hotels say they don’t know Steve, they’re lying.”
When asked about the money Stephen Paddock transferred to the Philippines before the shooting, his brother said, “One hundred thousand dollars isn’t that huge amount of money. He gambled that through a machine in hours.”
