Within three minutes, police said Talovic had killed five people and wounded four others. It was then that he encountered off-duty Ogden police officer Ken Hammond, who was having dinner with his wife at Trolley Square. He got into a shootout with Talovic until Salt Lake City police officers arrived.

"We put ourselves at risk. We place officers in harm's way in order to protect the public," Burbank said. "That's what happened. As the gunfire happened, he (Sgt. Andy Oblad) walked towards the gunfire."

Talovic was cornered inside the Pottery Barn Kids store, where he shot at the officers.

"He shot no one after the officers arrived," the chief said.

Talovic swore at the officers just before he was killed.

Looking back on the shooting, Burbank said that if the police hadn't responded so quickly, the death toll would have been much higher.

"Had he gotten into one of the restaurants or movie theater ..., there's no question given what he did in the first three minutes of it that he would have continued," the chief said. "It's one of those things that he gave no indication that he would have stopped. As he encountered people, he shot them or shot at them."

The weapons

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has been investigating where Talovic got the guns used in his killing spree. The 12-gauge shotgun was purchased legally about five weeks after his 18th birthday. The .38-caliber weapon was originally purchased out of state and then stolen. It changed hands several times, and then Talovic acquired it last summer, when he was 17.

Three people are being investigated in connection with the handgun. While police believe they did not know that the gun was going to be used in the mall massacre, Burbank said criminal charges are likely.

"We want to hold these people accountable for their part of it," he said.

The U.S. Attorney's Office in Utah would not comment on whether it planned to seek a federal grand jury indictment. The ATF is expected to present a case to federal prosecutors soon.

Even after leads are exhausted, police will still investigate any new leads that come in the future. Burbank wants a report prepared by homicide detectives and released to help give some closure to the victims and the public at large. He gave no timeline for when that report would be released.

However, the most glaring omission will likely be why Talovic committed mass murder.

"Ultimately," Burbank said, "his motive may have died with him."

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E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com