Benjamin Hoskins

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

The father of the gunman who opened fire at a music festival in Las Vegas on Sunday night, killing at least 59 people, was a notorious bank robber who escaped from a Texas prison in 1968 and was the subject of a massive manhunt.

Stephen Paddock’s father, Benjamin Hoskins, was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted List and described as “psychopathic” and “armed and dangerous,” the New York Times reports. 

Federal authorities finally tracked down Hoskins in 1978.

Hoskins was originally sentenced to 20 years in prison for bank robberies. At the time, Stephen Paddock was only 8 years old.

Friends and family said the father and son didn’t have a close relations.