Idol Chatter & Voice Views

A photo of Christina Grimmie, sent out by the Orlando Police Department via Twitter earlier today.

Orlando police have identified the killer as Kevin James Loibl of St. Petersburg, Fla,, and said he traveled to the show with the intention of harming Grimmie.

He was armed with two handguns, two extra magazines of ammunition for those handguns and a large hunting knife, police said, but killed himself after being tackled by Grimmie’s brother, Marcus.

Police said they will scour Loibl’s cell phone and computer for information on a motive. They said it did not appear Grimmie knew her killer.

As for the GoFundMe campaign, it was started earlier today by Brian Teefey, of LH7 Management, with a goal of raising $4,000.

That was a random figure selected when the page was posted, Heather Weiss, Grimmie’s publicist, told the Orlando Sentinel.

As of 7:30 p.m. Saturday, more than 1,500 people had pledged more $38,000 to the campaign.

Teefey’s message on the campaign: “Words cannot begin to describe the pain I am feeling. I learned this business through the eyes of a father and Christina was like a second daughter to me. All I wanted to do was assist her in achieving her musical dreams while protecting her from the pitfalls associated with the business.

“I never could have imagined this horrific event being one of the pitfalls needing to be avoided. In Christina’s honor I have created a Go Fund Me page to assist her family in their time of need. As family Mother, Father, and Brother made the ultimate family sacrifice to support Christina on her musical journey. They did nothing but love her and support her as family the best they knew how, the only worry I want them to have at this point is that of recovery.

Grimms I love you, and miss you beyond comprehension.”

See also
The Voice community mourns the death of Christina Grimmie, 22
Voice coaches react to tragic death of an “amazing soul”
Coverage from the Orlando Sentinel