A mass sh**ting has taken place at the Mormon Church of Latter Day Saints in Grand Blanc, Michigan.
Reports indicate that the attacker has since been incapacitated, and police have indicated that at least two people are deceased while numerous “victims” are expected.
Circulating photos of the scene show a towering column of smoke from fire that appears to have consumed the entire building’s roof.
Highlights
- A gunman attacked the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Michigan.
- The shooter was incapacitated but suspected of setting the building on fire.
- Police confirm “multiple victims,” details on casualties remain unclear.
Official accounts suggest hundreds of people are trapped in the burning building.
Aerial footage shows the entire church’s roof consumed by flames
Image credits: Google Maps
Grand Blanc Township Police Department has since reported: “There has been an active shooter at the church of Latter Day Saints on McCandlish Road.”
“There are multiple victims and the shooter is down. There is NO threat to the public at this time. The church is actively on fire,” the statement relayed by the Daily Mail noted.
As a nod to the update, aerial footage of the building shows a thick column of black smoke billowing from a large building while flames consume the structure’s roof.
Image credits: allenanalysis
The parking lot around the church appears to be at least half full of vehicles while on another side of the building, a fire truck can be seen with its crane extended.
The County Sheriff’s Office has since noted that there are multiple victims, but details are vague
Sheriff Swanson of the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office also provided a filmed account, confirming that “the entire church is on fire.”
“We are still trying to determine exactly when and where that fire ended up coming from and how it got started so, we believe it was deliberately set out by the suspect,” the outlet quoted Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye saying at a briefing.
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Notably three incendiary devices were discovered leading authorities to believe that fire was the result of a deliberate action.
The attack was initiated when a truck rammed the front of the building
Reports indicate that a pickup bearing two US national flags crashed through the entrance of the church.
The driver then unleashed a hail of bullets with an assault rifle on the congregation which is said to have comprised “hundreds” of people, children included.
The attacker is reported to be a 40-year-old combat veteran from Burton, Michigan
Image credits: Jake Sanford
According to an exclusive by the New York Post, Sanford served in Iraq from 2004 to 2008.
The outlet has cited a social media presence that suggests that he is a father of a young boy and husband.
Social media posts suggest that Sanford was a family man
An old GoFundMe page that raised $3,000 for a boy with congenital hyperinsulinism–a disorder that leads to the overproduction of insulin–was also unearthed.
Images show the family posing and smiling.
Image credits: Jake Sanford
Eyewitness accounts indicate that the attack started shortly after a hymn. The churchgoers initially thought the attack was an accident and rushed to help Sanford.
One of the service's attendees was 38-year-old Paul Kirby, who saw the former Marine getting out of his truck and realized that it was, in fact, an attack.
An eyewitness account suggests that at least four people expired in the attack
“He started shooting at me,” the man recalled.
He then ran into the church to collect his wife and kids, and as many people as they could pile into his car and fled the scene.
Image credits: nexusdossiers
Renye acknowledged that there were “multiple victims,” but his department did not have their names.
He was quoted as saying, “Ten gunshot victims have been transported to local hospitals at this time, including one who has been confirmed deceased,” and noted that rescue workers expected to find more victims once the scene is secured.
Another bystander, however, reported seeing four (filled) yellow body bags.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer described the act as “unacceptable”
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer took to X with a statement of her own.
“My heart is breaking for the Grand Blanc community,' she lamented. “Violence anywhere, especially in a place of worship, is unacceptable.”
“I am grateful to the first responders who took action quickly.”
“We will continue to monitor this situation and hold the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc close.”
Donald Trump said it was part of an ongoing attack on Christianity
The incident has since drawn a response from the White House, with Donald Trump writing, describing it as “another attack on Christians” on Truth Social:
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“I have been briefed on the horrendous shooting that took place at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Michigan.
“The FBI was immediately on scene,” he claimed, “and will be leading the Federal Investigation, and providing full support to State and Local Officials. The suspect is [deceased], but there is still a lot to learn.
The attack comes a month after the Minneapolis attack that claimed the lives of two children
Image credits: 2againsttyranny
This shooting comes less than a month after Robert Westman took the lives of two children and injured 18 others after he barred the doors of the Annunciation Church in Minneapolis.
The US attorney general Joseph Thompson was later quoted as saying, “the [attacker] expressed hate towards many groups, including the Jewish community and towards President Trump.”
Journals and literature belonging to Westman were uncovered. Of this, Thompson said, “I won't dignify the attacker's words by repeating them; they are horrific and vile.”
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara would later explain, “The purpose of the shooter's actions was to obtain notoriety.”
Some netizens think the spate of firearm-related violence was brought about by politicians
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