Scott Brunoehler remembers his former brother-in-law Stephen Paddock as a smart, fun-loving guy.
Paddock was a young man thriving in Southern California when he was married to Brunoehler's sister, Sharon, in the 1970s and early 1980s, his former in-law told the Los Angeles Times Monday.
"Oh he was a smart guy, like an accountant or something. He had a good job, he was a great guy actually," Brunoehler said. "We used to go water skiing together."
Brunoehler, 62, said he hasn't spoken to Paddock since he divorced Brunoehler's sister.
"It was pretty mutual, they just kind of grew apart," Brunoehler said.
When the group was in their 20s and 30s, Paddock would take them out on his boat at Castaic Lake or Buena Vista Lake in Kern County, Brunoehler said.
"He seemed like a normal, good guy. I don't remember anything bad back then at all," he said. "I'm still in shock."
Brunoehler learned of the shooting Sunday night when his friend called to say his friend's daughter, who was in Las Vegas, was wounded in the attack.
He turned on the TV, and then his niece called him.
"She said, 'Recognize that name?'" Brunoehler said. "They were all telling me who he was."
