The agent and five other individuals were invited by Gendron to read about his mass shooting plans and the target location about 30 minutes before Gendron reportedly killed 10 people at Tops Market on May 14. It is unknown if any of them accepted Gendron's invitation. None called law enforcement. The FBI may charge them as accomplices. Some 'lone wolf' gunmen from prior shooting events have been shown to have links to the military, government intelligence, or law enforcement.

A "retired" federal agent "regularly communicated" with accused Buffalo gunman Payton Gendron in an online chatroom on Discord and authorities are investigating whether he had advanced knowledge of the attack, according to a report from The Buffalo News.

From The Buffalo News, "Authorities investigating if retired federal agent knew of Buffalo mass shooting plans in advance":

Law enforcement officers are investigating whether a retired federal agent had about 30 minutes advance notice of a white supremacist's plans to murder Black people at a Buffalo supermarket, two law enforcement officials told The Buffalo News.