SYDNEY: Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock’s “regular companion” was an Australian woman who moved to the United States 20 years ago to work on the casino strip, the government confirmed Tuesday.
Marilou Danley, 62, was initially said to be a “person of interest” but has since been cleared of any involvement in the shocking shooting that left 59 dead and more than 500 injured.
American authorities said she was out of the country at the time retired accountant Paddock, 64, unleashed his reign of terror on concert-goers from a hotel window.
Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop tweeted: “I understand US authorities have ruled out Australian Marilou Danley as a person of interest.”
She added to reporters that “US authorities were in contact with us about Marilou Danley.”
“There are reports her ID was used for booking the hotel or some such detail. Australia will support the US authorities in their investigation in whatever way we can, but we have not had contact with Marilou Danley directly.”
US reports and officials said she is either in the Philippines or Japan, although neither country was able to confirm her whereabouts.
Australian media said she was on holiday in the Philippines with three girlfriends.
News Corp. Australia newspapers said the Filipino-Australian used to live on the Gold Coast tourist strip and still had a sister there.
“I can’t comment at the moment, I can’t say anything,” her sister Liza Werner told the Sydney Daily Telegraph, which said she was a grandmother.
The newspaper cited friends as saying she resided on the Gold Coast for more than a decade and was married to an Australian man who has since died.
She moved to the US about 20 years ago and reportedly shared a house with Paddock in a new golf course development in the desert just outside Mesquite, Nevada, 80 miles northeast (130 kilometers) of Las Vegas.
It was not clear if they were in a relationship or simply friends, with some reports referring to her as his “regular companion.”
Paddock, a high-stakes gambler with no criminal record, killed himself after mowing down concert-goers with burst of automatic weapon fire from the 32nd story window of a swish Las Vegas hotel.
A motive is yet to be established.
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Vegas shooter’s ‘companion an Australian granny’
Vegas shooter’s ‘companion an Australian granny’
Canada’s Carney hails ‘strategic partnership’ in talks with Xi
BEIJING: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping began talks in Beijing on Friday, marking the first meeting between the countries’ leaders in China’s capital in eight years.
Carney lauded a “new strategic partnership” between the two countries after he arrived for the talks at the Great Hall of the People.
Following President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariffs on Canadian products, Carney has sought to reduce his country’s economic reliance on its main market, the United States.
Carney told Xi that “together, we can build the best of what this relationship has been in the past to create a new one.”
“Agriculture, energy, finance, that’s where we can make the most immediate progress,” he added.
Xi welcomed Carney and his delegation, saying that China-Canada relations were at a turning point after their last meeting at an APAC summit in October.
“It can be said that our meeting last year opened a new chapter in turning China-Canada relations toward improvement,” Xi told Carney.
“The healthy and stable development of China-Canada relations serves the common interests of our two countries,” he said, adding he was “glad” to see discussions over the last few months to restore cooperation.
Officials from both countries have been in talks to lower tariffs, but an agreement has yet to be reached.
Carney, who on Thursday met with Premier Li Qiang, is also scheduled to hold talks with business leaders to discuss trade.
Carney lauded a “new strategic partnership” between the two countries after he arrived for the talks at the Great Hall of the People.
Following President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariffs on Canadian products, Carney has sought to reduce his country’s economic reliance on its main market, the United States.
Carney told Xi that “together, we can build the best of what this relationship has been in the past to create a new one.”
“Agriculture, energy, finance, that’s where we can make the most immediate progress,” he added.
Xi welcomed Carney and his delegation, saying that China-Canada relations were at a turning point after their last meeting at an APAC summit in October.
“It can be said that our meeting last year opened a new chapter in turning China-Canada relations toward improvement,” Xi told Carney.
“The healthy and stable development of China-Canada relations serves the common interests of our two countries,” he said, adding he was “glad” to see discussions over the last few months to restore cooperation.
Officials from both countries have been in talks to lower tariffs, but an agreement has yet to be reached.
Carney, who on Thursday met with Premier Li Qiang, is also scheduled to hold talks with business leaders to discuss trade.
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