The man who opened fire outside a Wayne, Mich., church filled with worshippers before he was struck by a vehicle and then fatally shot by security staff had attended services there a couple of times in the last year and his mother is a member, police said.
Several people can be seen carrying or directing children to duck down and move away in a livestream video of the Sunday morning service at CrossPointe Community Church in Wayne.
“C’mon, everybody to the back,” a woman calls out. The woman, who was initially crouching between two rows of seats, stands and waves an arm. “Please, everyone come to the back!”
People, some of them ducking their heads, rush out as others can be heard yelling “Go!” and “Come on!”
A loud crack is heard and people can be heard crying out as those remaining run and walk quickly out of sight.
The gunman, 31, did not have any previous contacts with local police or a criminal history, but may have been suffering a mental health crisis, the Wayne Police Department said in a news release.
Churchgoers attending a morning service at CrossPointe Community Church spotted the gunman driving recklessly and then saw him exit his car wearing a tactical vest and carrying a rifle and a handgun, police Chief Ryan Strong said at a Sunday evening news conference.
The man began firing as he approached the church, striking one person in the leg.
“A parishioner struck the gunman with his vehicle as the gunman shot the vehicle repeatedly,” Strong told reporters. “At least two staff members shot the gunman, causing the fatal wounds.”
The shooting occurred around 11 a.m. in Wayne, a city of about 17,000 people located about 40 kilometres west of Detroit. The person who was shot in the leg was treated for non-life-threatening injuries, the chief said. Nobody else was hurt.
Strong said a church member ran the suspect over with his pickup truck, giving security staff time to shoot him.
“We are grateful for the heroic actions of the church’s staff members, who undoubtedly saved many lives and prevented a large-scale mass shooting,” the chief said.
About 150 people were inside the church at the time. The church’s website says it hosts a worship service on Sundays at 10:45 a.m.
Wayne Police Deputy Chief Finley Carter III said hours later that it was too early to know a motive. FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino tweeted that bureau “leadership and support teams” were at the scene and helping with the investigation.
Messages left by The Associated Press on Sunday on voicemail and a Facebook page for the church were not immediately returned.