Hooker helped Las Vegas shooter

A United States official said investigators believe the Las Vegas shooter may have hired a prostitute in the days before the shooting, and they are interviewing other call girls as they look for clues into his motive.

The official said yesterday that prostitutes are among the hundreds of leads they are pursuing as part of their investigation into Stephen Paddock. The official, who was briefed by federal law enforcement officials, wasn't authorised to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The official said a note containing a series of numbers was found on a nightstand in Paddock's room at the Mandalay Bay hotel after the shooting. The official also said that Paddock had taken at least a dozen cruises out of the US in the last few years, most with his girlfriend Marilou Danley. The official said at least one of the cruises was to the Middle East.

Paddock fired indiscriminately on Sunday from his upper-level room at the Mandalay Bay hotel casino at people attending a country music festival below killing 58 persons and injuring nearly 500 people. The 64-year-old Paddock killed himself as authorities closed in.