El Paso firearms instructor reacts to mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- A day after a mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine left 18 people killed and dozens more injured, officials say the suspect is a firearms instructor.

ABC-7 spoke with Ben Cheng, an El Paso firearms instructor with 35 years of firearm experience.

Cheng told ABC-7 that the training and the expertise he and his fellow instructors go through provides them with an edge over ordinary people.

Cheng says most of his colleagues screen their potential students very carefully to make sure if they take classes, it will be only to learn how to shoot.

Cheng shared his thoughts after the shooting, he said:

"Extremely sad. You know, this this, unfortunate event, these crazy killers. They're amongst us, you know, they're just in our society. And I don't think there's much we can do about it," Cheng said.

The training they go through also depends on the individual, because some people get lightly trained and others are extensively trained.

"But indelibly, he is somewhat least qualified or trained to be an instructor. And so he does present some danger to the society, but not necessarily more so than any other person with a gun. And he doesn't possess any special ability to be able to harm the public," Cheng added.