What we know
- At least four people were killed and eight were injured yesterday when a man drove a vehicle through the front doors of a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and opened fire in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan.
- Officials have named the suspect as Thomas Jacob Sanford, 40. He exited the vehicle and began firing an assault rifle at parishioners, police said. He was killed at the scene.
- Authorities said the gunman also set a fire at the church. As many as three improvised devices were found at the scene, according to two senior U.S. law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation.
- Authorities praised the bravery of churchgoers who shielded children from gunfire in the crowded Sunday service.
Sheriff says day of shooting was full of acts of bravery
Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson says he witnessed moments yesterday he will never forget.
He saw firefighters, some in their late 50s, crawl through the rubble calling out “Can you hear me?” as they searched for survivors.
He also described children who were “stoic” as they were taken to a reunification center, noting they were calm because their schools had trained them for active shooters.
Authorities have said the death toll could have been higher if not for heroes inside the church.
Swanson said he will forever remember one victim who died on the scene as someone who “gave his life to protect that flock.”
“When I saw the community of the LDS church, they gathered under the pavilion, and they were all embracing each other. They knew that they lost people, but they stuck together as a community. They stuck together as a church,” he said. “Those are our snapshots. This is what unity looks like.”
Swanson urged his community to focus on healing.
“What can we do to lean on each other, to be kind to somebody, to create a sense of unity over division?" Swanson said. “Those are little micro steps of not only healing but also turning the tide.”
Former colleagues 'flabbergasted' co-worker is accused in attack
Garry Reynolds Jr. said he worked with Thomas Sanford at the Coca-Cola distribution center in Flint about 10 years ago and had known him both when he was single and then when he got married and became a father.
Friends at work supported Sanford as his son, Brantlee, was going through operations for his medical condition, Reynolds said.
“He loved his son,” Reynolds said. “He loved that boy.”
Reynolds couldn’t recall any red flags at work involving Sanford or complaints about his behavior.
“He was hilarious,” Reynolds said. “That’s why we’re all so stunned, because he was this really good guy. This was a guy that planted sunflowers. He had a large field of sunflowers. They’d all come up at once, and he would let people come and take pictures in his field, just because it made people happy. It wasn’t for a cash crop.”
Reynolds said he wasn’t sure what Sanford was doing for work in more recent years, and he mostly stayed in touch through his wife on social media.
Former colleagues, he said, were “flabbergasted” to learn Sanford was named as the suspect.
“Everyone’s just going, ‘What happened?’” Reynolds said. “Where in his life did it crack?”
EXCLUSIVE: Shooter's family has 'no answer' for church attack
Thomas Sanford, the shooter's father, said today that his family is "devastated" and doesn't know what to think about their son's actions.
In an exclusive statement to NBC News, Thomas Sanford described his son as a loving father and husband. The family also extended their prayers to the Grand Blanc community and everyone affected by the church attack.
"We are completely in shock over this; we have no answers," the statement said. "We are asking for privacy as we grieve our loss and those of the others."
Officials looking into IEDs left behind in suspect's car
Officials continue to investigate a number of improvised explosive devices found in the suspect's car.
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives special agent James Dier told NBC News the IEDs were "pretty basic in nature" and described them as "consumer fireworks taped together." He said that other consumer-grade smoke machines were found but that they would only create smoke.
None of the IEDs were set off, Dier said.
Dier maintained that he did not know why the IEDs were taken to the scene and said officials are still trying to determine the motive for the attack.
"We're going to look under every stone. Look, turn every piece of paper over and look and try to get to the very heart of the matter," he said.
Dier said he doesn't believe the attack was very planned out considering what officials have learned so far, but he said it must have been planned at least to some extent in the suspect's mind.
"There's no real science to this. It's just, some people hit a breaking point, and whatever that breaking point was for him, he decided to act," Dier said.
All of the deceased victims died from gunshot wounds, Dier said, clarifying that no one died in the fire.
2 patients remain in critical condition, doctor says
At least eight patients were taken to Henry Ford Genesys yesterday and two of them are still in critical condition, said Dr. Michael Danic, the hospital's chief of staff.
The victims are ages 6 to 78, Danic said. Five were treated for gunshot wounds, and three others were treated for smoke inhalation. The child was stabilized and released, Danic said.
Danic said a number of the hospital's resident physicians were at the church at the time of the incident, describing them as "heroes."
"Not only were they victims, they are also first responders," Danic said. "And having your friends and family come in injured and take care of them is a really incredible experience."
Everyone is accounted for from shooting, police chief says
The investigation continues, but officials are no longer searching for people in the remains of the church, Grand Blanc Township Police Chief Bill Renye said.
"We still are in the process of clearing out that church, but at this time, everyone is accounted for," Renye told reporters.
Officials said that it would be the last news conference about the shooting and that any new information would be released on social media.
FBI has interviewed more than 100 people, official says
Just 24 hours after the shooting yesterday, the FBI has interviewed over 100 victims and witnesses, and it continues to work through more interviews today, said Reuben Coleman, acting special agent in charge of the FBI Detroit field office.
Coleman reiterated that the FBI is investigating the attack as an act of targeted violence and that officials are still working to determine a motive.
Investigative squads and specialty teams were "out all night," he said, "exhausting leads" that have been coming in from the public.
'We cannot keep living our lives like this,' Gov. Whitmer says of gun violence
Whitmer urged the state to come together after the shooting, noting that she spoke to President Donald Trump, who offered his condolences.
She sad residents of Michigan have experienced shootings at schools, stores, parades, festivals and houses of worship in recent years. They are places to come together and feel connected, Whitmer said.
"But today, this place has been shattered by bullets and broken glass," she said. "And this might be a familiar pain, but it hurts all the same, every time. We cannot keep living our lives like this."
Members of the Grand Blanc Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints "worship together, they sing together, and they serve together," she added.
"We will see this congregation unite and rally together like never before and continue worshipping together, singing together and serving together, because that's who Michiganders are," Whitmer said.
Gov. Whitmer calls on people to 'lower the temperature'
As Whitmer questioned the gunman's motive, she stressed that "speculation is unhelpful, and it can be downright dangerous."
Officials are working to understand the motive so they can prevent such attacks in the future, she said, calling on people to "lower the temperature of that rhetoric" and not try to point fingers before it is known what caused the shooting.
"Let's keep doing work together. ... Be kind, and let's love our neighbors," Whitmer said.
Gov. Whitmer at news conference
An official update on yesterday's shooting is underway.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer thanked the community, first responders and other local officers for their quick response yesterday.
"We've seen gun violence in our schools, stores, parades, festivals and our houses of worship," she said. "These are places that we go to feel connected, to feel safe, to be together. But today, this place has been shattered by bullets and broken glass."
