A laid-off clothing designer who killed a former colleague outside New York’s Empire State Building did not fire at police, according to evidence collected so far.
Gunman Jeffrey Johnson, 58, was shot by armed officers, and nine bystanders were wounded.
One witness claimed Johnson had fired at police, but authorities say ballistics evidence so far does not support that.
Johnson had worked for six years as women's accessories designer at Hazan Imports, which is housed in the Empire State Building, but he was laid off about a year ago.
The shooting caused chaos in the heart of Manhattan.
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said Johnson fired at his former colleague three times at close range after a dispute about 9am.
Police and investigators inspect the body of the alleged shooter The name of the 41-year-old victim was not released.
Johnson then tried to flee but he was confronted by police who had been alerted by a nearby construction worker, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.
Mayor Bloomberg originally said Johnson “clearly turned his gun on the police”, but that claim is now in doubt.
Some of those injured may have been hit by police bullets, he admitted, however all are expected to survive.
Authorities have few details about Johnson's background so far, but the FBI has ruled out terrorism.
The shooting caused chaos in the heart of Manhattan at the height of the summer travel season and just after the morning rush hour.
Tourists gather on the building's observation deck after it re-opened Police on their regular anti-terrorism duties in the tourist area rushed to the scene.
Witness Rebecca Fox said: "I was scared, in shock, literally shaking. It was just by chance I missed it.
"I saw a woman covered with blood. Another woman was being taken to an ambulance."
The Empire State Building is one of the city's icons, on par with the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge.
In 1997, six people were wounded and one killed in a shooting rampage on the skyscraper's observation deck before the gunman turned the gun on himself.
