Marilou Danley, the Filipino-Australian earlier considered as a person of interest in the Las Vegas, Nevada shooting on October 1 that killed 59 persons, is reportedly in the Philippines.
According to media reports quoting sources at the Bureau of Immigration in Manila, the 62-year-old Danley reportedly arrived in the Philippines last September 25 from Hong Kong.
This means that Danley was in the Philippines before the Las Vegas shooting.
Danley is said to be a girlfriend or partner of Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock, 64.
She is said to be Filipino but an Australian national and has been living in the United States.
At least 59 people were killed and more than 500 others were injured when Paddock fired an automatic rifle from the 32nd floor of Mandalay Bay Hotel at the crowd attending a concert in Las Vegas.
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 U.S. about 20 years ago and reportedly shared a house with Paddock in a new golf course development in the desert just outside Mesquite, Nevada, 130 kilometers from Las Vegas.
It was not clear if they were in a relationship or were simply friends.
Some reports refer to Danley as Paddock’s “regular companion.”
Paddock, a high-stakes gambler with no criminal record, killed himself after mowing down concert-goers in Las Vegas.
“Based on reports, Marilou Danley is not a suspect and appears to have been cleared by the police, we are not inclined to release any information at this time, the information being confidential,” said Bureau of Immigration spokesperson Ma. Antonette Mangrobang.
“We assure though that the BI shall cooperate with any and all of our international counterparts in providing any relevant information that would help their investigation,” Mangrobang added.
The Las Vegas police have cleared Danley of involvement in the shooting, the worst gun attack incident in the U.S. in recent history.
“We believe her not to be involved,” the Las Vegas sheriff relayed to Consul General Adelio Angelito Cruz of the Philippine consulate in Los Angeles.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) said, “Marilou Danley is no longer being sought out as a person of interest.”
“LVMPD detectives have made contact with her and do not believe she is involved with the shooting on the strip,” the police said.
According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), authorities said Danley was not in the U.S. at the time of the incident and is no longer a person of interest in the investigation.
“She was reported to have been in the Philippines at the time of the incident but there are unconfirmed reports that she is no longer in the Philippines at this time. Ms. Danley was not in the U.S. when the incident happened,” the DFA said, also citing information relayed to the consul general by the Las Vegas sheriff’s office.
The DFA said the consulate was verifying a report about a Filipino-American among 500 people injured in the shooting rampage on the Las Vegas strip.
Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop tweeted: “I understand US authorities have ruled out Australian Marilou Danley as a person of interest.”