Journalism of Courage
The death toll in shooting and fire at Mormon Church in Michigan has risen to four after a man crashed his vehicle through the front door, started firing after coming out of the vehicle with an assault rifle and set the building ablaze during a Sunday service, officials said. The authorities added that police shot and killed the suspect.
The suspect, identified by police as Thomas Jacob Sanford, 40, was a former US Marine and a resident of a nearby town in Burton. Sanford “deliberately” set the church building on fire which was engulfed in flames and billowed smoke, police said.
During a press briefing, Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye said, “We do believe that we will find some additional victims once we find the area where the fire was.” Renye added that hundreds of people were inside the church in Grand Blanc Township when the suspect rammed his vehicle and started shooting.
A 911 call was made and officers responded to it within 30 seconds and killed the shooter about eight minutes later, police chief said. Two law enforcement officers, one from the state Department of Natural Resources and another from Grand Blanc Township pursued the suspect after he left the church and “engaged in gunfire,” Renye said.
According to the FBI which is leading the investigation, the incident is being seen as an “act of targeted violence”. Reuben Coleman, the Acting Special Agent in-charge of FBI Detroit Field Office said, “This act of violence has no place in our state or anywhere else in our country. The FBI is committed to continue finding out the facts, circumstances and motives behind this tragedy.”
The police chief, while providing an update about the condition of injured people, said, one of the wounded persons was in critical condition while seven others were stable, AP reported. Investigation remains underway in Michigan as the motive behind the attack still remains unclear.
President Donald Trump also reacted to the church attack and said the shooting “appears to be yet another targeted attack on Christians in the United States of America”.
“PRAY for the victims, and their families. THIS EPIDEMIC OF VIOLENCE IN OUR COUNTRY MUST END, IMMEDIATELY!” Trump wrote.
(with inputs from Reuters, AP)
