SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas (NBC News) – Twenty-six people were killed and 20 more wounded when a gunman walked into a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas and opened fire Sunday.
The victims range in age from 5-to-72 years old.
Texas Department of Public Safety said 26-year-old Devin Patrick Kelley burst through the front doors of the chapel and opened fire, wearing all-black tactical type gear and a ballistic vest.
Kelley sprayed the congregation with multiple rounds before turning to leave. He was met outside by a resident who rushed to the scene with his rifle and returned fire.
Kelley ran to his vehicle, while Good Samaritan Johnnie Langendorff followed close behind.
“I did what I thought I needed to do which was they said there was a shooting, I pursued,” Langendorff said.
Police joined in and after a brief chase, Kelley crashed and was found dead inside his vehicle.
Kelley was a former member of the Air Force, discharged for bad conduct in 2014. Ann Stefanek, a spokeswoman for the Air Force, confirmed that Kelley was court-martialed in 2012 on two charges of assaulting his spouse and their child. He was confined for a year and reduced in rank to airman basic E-1 before his discharge, she said.
Abbott called Kelley “very deranged.”
“He seemed to have a troubled past even before he enlisted,” Abbott said on “TODAY.”
Federal officials said the motive for the shooting was unclear. According to Wilson County Sheriff Joe Tackitt, Kelley’s in-laws attended the church, although they weren’t there at the time. The in-laws were speaking with investigators, Tackitt said.
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