At a press conference Monday afternoon, officials in Michigan said a search for a motive in the shooting at a Mormon chapel is ongoing.
The shooting occurred Sunday morning at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chapel in Grand Blanc Township, Mich. Four people are dead, while eight are injured, officials confirmed Monday.
The perpetrator was identified as 40-year-old Thomas Jacob Sanford. Officials said Sanford drove his vehicle into the church, opened fire on attendees with an assault rifle and set fire to the building.
Sanford was killed by authorities in the parking lot of the chapel within eight minutes of the initial 911 call, Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye said at a press conference Sunday evening.
FBI special agent in charge Reuben Coleman reiterated that the bureau is investigating the incident as an act of targeted violence and authorities are exhausting leads, some of which came from the public.
Kris Johns, a city council candidate in nearby Burton, Mich., told the Detroit Free Press that he spoke to Sanford less than a week ago. During their conversation, Sanford described Mormons as “the antichrist.”
Coleman, though, stressed Monday that investigators are still working to determine a motive. He added that more than 100 victims and witnesses have been interviewed since the incident, with more to come.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is also investigating the incident. ATF special agent in charge James Deir said Monday that the bureau’s national response team arrived at the scene Sunday night and is examining the scene.
At the start of the press conference, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) said speculation is “unhelpful” and “dangerous.”
“I just ask that people lower the temperature of rhetoric,” Whitmer said. “Keep your loved ones close, and keep this community close to your hearts.”
Officials said two of the deceased victims died of gunshot wounds, while the other two died of smoke inhalation. Michael Danic, the medical chief of staff at Henry Ford Genesys Hospital — which treated eight victims — said Monday that those harmed span from age 6 to 78.
Five of the injured suffered gunshot wounds, with one dying in the emergency department and two still in critical condition. The other three inhaled smoke at the church, with two being discharged.