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Police: Gunman knew victims in California building attack that left 3 adults, 1 child dead

California Shooting Offices
Posted at 3:59 AM, Apr 01, 2021
and last updated 2021-04-01 13:24:40-04

LOS ANGELES — Southern California police say the gunman who killed four people and wounded a fifth at an office complex knew all the victims either through business or personally.

Orange police Lt. Jennifer Amat also revealed that the gunman had chained gates to the complex closed, forcing officers who responded Wednesday to engage him from outside.

When police arrived at about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, gunshots were being fired at the two-story building that includes a mobile home brokerage and other businesses.

Police withheld the identities of the dead but said one was a 9-year-old boy. The others were a man and two women.

The gunman was also wounded and hospitalized.

"I can tell you that we haven't had an incident like this in the city of Orange since 1997," Lt. Jennifer Amat with Orange police said during a news conference. "It's just such a tragedy for the victims, their families, our community and our police department."

Wednesday's shooting happened in the city of Orange southeast of Los Angeles.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom called the killings “horrifying and heartbreaking.”

It was the nation’s third mass shooting in two weeks.