A gunman opened fire inside a Michigan church during Sunday services before apparently setting the building ablaze, killing at least two people and injuring several others before police shot him, authorities said.
Hundreds of people were inside The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc Township when a 40-year-old man rammed his pickup truck through the front door. He then got out of the vehicle and started shooting, police chief William Renye told reporters. Police believe he deliberately set the building on fire.
After the suspect left the church, two officers pursued him and engaged in gunfire, Chief Renye said. The man was killed. Flames and smoke could be seen for hours before the blaze was put out, and first responders were then sifting through the wreckage.
A four-door pickup truck with two American flags displayed in the truck bed remained on the scene. Chief Renye identified the suspect as Thomas Jacob Sanford, 40, from neighboring Burton. The police chief did not specify a motive during a news conference on Sunday evening.
Chief Renye said one of the wounded people was in critical condition and seven others were stable. Investigators were also searching the suspect’s residence in nearby Burton.
Authorities did not provide any additional details about the suspect, including whether he was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, widely known as the Mormon church.
This tragic incident is the latest of many shooting attacks on houses of worship in the US over the past 20 years, including one in August that killed two children during mass at the Church of the Annunciation in Minneapolis.
US President Donald Trump said he was briefed on the shooting. In a social media post, he applauded the FBI, who local authorities said were sending 100 agents to the area, for their response.
“PRAY for the victims, and their families. THIS EPIDEMIC OF VIOLENCE IN OUR COUNTRY MUST END, IMMEDIATELY!” Mr. Trump wrote.
The church, surrounded by a car park and a large lawn, is located near residential areas and a Jehovah’s Witness church. It is in Grand Blanc Township, a community of roughly 40,000 people outside Flint.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement that her heart was breaking for the Grand Blanc community. “Violence anywhere, especially in a place of worship, is unacceptable,” she said.
The shooting occurred the morning after Russell M. Nelson, the oldest-ever president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, died at age 101. The next president of the faith, widely known as the Mormon church, is expected to be Dallin H. Oaks, as per church protocol.
https://www.breakingnews.ie/world/two-dead-and-several-injured-in-shooting-and-fire-at-michigan-church-say-police-1812313.html