Police have “informally identified” the gunman in a premeditated shooting spree that left five dead in Santa Monica on Friday.
The shooter has been identified by some sources as John Zawahri, according to the LA Times. He has reportedly had previous mental issues and was angry about his parents’ divorce.
Five have been confirmed dead as a result of the shooting, including the shooter. Only one victim, Carlos Franco, an employee of Santa Monica College, has been identified, reports the Wall Street Journal.
Franco was shot while driving his car near campus. A passenger was also shot and in critical condition.
Names of the other three victims are being withheld pending notification of family members.
Zawahri was armed with a semi-automatic rifle, a hand-gun, and several rounds of ammunition. He wore a vest that could carry magazines and knee guards.
“I would presume anytime someone puts on a vest of some sort and has a bag of loaded magazines as an extra receiver, has a handgun and has a semi automatic rifle, carjacks folks, goes to a college, kills more people and has to be neutralized at hands of police -- I would stay that's premeditated,” Santa Monica Police Chief Jacqueline Seabrooks said.
He reportedly fired shots “indiscriminately” at five to seven locations on Friday, before being shot and killed by police at the campus library.
The suspect would have turned 24 today, reports ABC News. He had been enrolled in the college as recently as 2010.
Image: Twitter