On Sunday evening, a shooter opened fire on a crowd at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in California, killing three — including a 6-year-old boy — and injuring at least a dozen others before being shot dead by police.
According to The Sacramento Bee, the attack took place at 5:41 p.m. as the popular festival was wrapping up.
“Initial reports said the shooter entered the festival area from a creek area outside of Christmas Hill Park, where the festival was held,” the paper reports. The chief of police told the press that the shooter appears to have used “some sort of tool” to cut through fencing so he could enter the festival without having to go through security, which included metal detectors.
The shooter, who has been identified as a 19-year-old male (his name is withheld here per Daily Wire policy on not releasing the names of mass shooters), was killed by law enforcement minutes after opening fire.
Gilroy Police Chief Scot Smithee said they were looking for a second suspect potentially tied to the attack, but police have not released a description of the suspect.
“We have one suspect that we know is (dead), and some witnesses reporting there may be a second suspect, although we don’t know if a second suspect was engaged in any shooting, or in a support role,” Smithee told reporters at a press conference Sunday night, as reported by CBS San Francisco.
Smithee offered no comments on a possible motive for the shooting, but described the incident as “somewhat random.”
One witness, Jack Van Breen, a singer with a band performing at the event, told the Associated Press that he heard someone yell out to the shooter, “Why are you doing this?” The shooter, said Van Breen, replied, “Because I’m really angry.”
Among those killed was a 6-year-old boy, Steven Romero, whose mother, Christine Ibanez, mourned his death in a Facebook post highlighted by CBS. “RIP little one. This should have never happened. Hug your little ones tightly tonight. Prayers to his family.”
“His mother and other family members were also injured in today’s shooting, being treated at the same hospital,” NBC News’ Rob Mayeda reports.
Video taking by one of the attendees and posted online by California Brief captured the terrifying moment when the shooting began.
The Sacramento Bee reports that, according to police scanners, investigators did not immediately locate the weapon but discovered at least two magazines at the scene of the crime.
President Donald Trump posted a response to initial reports of the shooting online. “Law Enforcement is at the scene of shootings in Gilroy, California. Reports are that shooter has not yet been apprehended. Be careful and safe!” he wrote before police confirmed that they had killed the shooter.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has also responded to the “horrific” attack, stating that his office is “monitoring the situation closely” and expressing his gratitude to law enforcement. “This is nothing short of horrific. Tonight, CA stands with the Gilroy community,” he wrote in response to a notification from the Gilroy Police Department. “My office is monitoring the situation closely. Grateful for the law enforcement’s efforts and their continued work as this situation develops.”
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