The author, an exmarine of 28, also to death
There were a hundred people celebrating a party at the bar when the shooting started
AGENCIES
The Angels
11/08/2018 – 5:35 pm CET
At least 12 people have been killed in a gunfight at a bar in the Californian town of Thousand Oaks, according to US authorities. The gunman, a 28-year-old ‘exmarine’, died inside the Borderline Bar and Grill, where the incident began at around 11:20 pm local time. A spokesman for the county sheriff’s office said it was believed that there were about a hundred people at the time of the attack.
A woman who has fled the scene of the shooting / MIKE NELSON (EFE)
One witness told ABC’s local branch that he saw a suspect with a beard and a hat throwing smoke grenades and attacking a security guard before firing indiscriminately. «People were trying to get out the windows,» he added. «I saw him enter (…) and he started firing,» said 19-year-old Mitchell Hunter, a local NBC affiliate who has described the shooter as a man with fair skin and dark hair. He would have opened fire with a semiautomatic pistol.
At the venue, the largest live music venue in the area, a «country» party for university students was held on Wednesday night. Thousand Oaks is about 60 kilometers northwest of downtown Los Angeles and not far from the wealthy areas of Calabasas and Malibu.
The Police, which also investigates the motivations of the attacker, has cross-checked his fingerprints with the databases to find out who he was, since he did not carry any identification document. The sheriff has finally confirmed that it is Ian Long, a 28-year-old exmarine of which only «minor events» are recorded as traffic incidents.
Tells a «horrible scene»
Hundreds of people were inside the nightclub when the shooting began. Dean has described the situation as «tragic» and has related some details of the «horrible scene» that emergency services ran into, with «blood everywhere.»
«They found people hiding in bathrooms, in attics,» the sheriff explained in an appearance before the media to present the latest information on the case.
Dean has included among the fatalities a police sergeant, Ron Healus, who was part of the first team sent to the area and who «has died like a hero.» «He came in to save lives, to save other people,» lamented the police chief, recalling this agent with 29 years of experience.
Helus, who planned to retire next year, was hit by «multiple» shots, «Dean explained, US President Donald Trump has reported that he has been aware of the tragedy and has applauded the» great courage shown by the Police. «» God bless all the victims and families of the victims. Thanks to the security forces, «he said on Twitter.
More than 300 shootings
With the Thousand Oaks, there are already 307 shootings with several victims suffered this year in the United States, according to the Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit organization that aims to put figures to a recurring tragedy in the US.
In total, this organization has confirmed almost 49,000 incidents with firearms and has raised to 12,475 the approximate number of fatalities, including 569 children under the age of eleven.