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#Borderline Massacre: 12 Killed, Gunman Dead at Country Music Bar in California

Posted on | November 8, 2018 | Comments Off on #Borderline Massacre: 12 Killed, Gunman Dead at Country Music Bar in California

 

At least 11 people were shot and there were “multiple fatalities” when a gunman opened fire at the Borderline, a country music bar in Thousand Oaks, California. The shooting took place during a “college night” event at the bar. Some witnesses have claimed the gunman was a Middle Eastern man who threw smoke bombs to create confusion during the shooting. A Ventura County sheriff’s deputy is reportedly among those shot.

UPDATE 6 a.m. ET: In a press conference, Ventura County Sheriff Geoff Dean said 11 victims were killed inside the bar. The gunman was found dead, and a sheriff’s deputy, who was the first on the scene, was fatally wounded by the gunman. The gunman has not yet been identified, the sheriff said. Terrorism has not been ruled out as a motive, but the investigation is continuing.

UPDATE 6:20 a.m. ET: The Daily Mail reports:

A gunman has opened fire at a country music bar during a student night in the city of Thousand Oaks, California, killing 12 people and injuring several before turning the gun on himself.
The shooter stormed the Borderline Bar and Grill wearing a black trenchcoat armed with a pistol equipped with an extended magazine and smoke grenades and began targeting people as young as 18.
A Ventura County deputy sheriff was among the deceased. An additional ’10 to 15′ victims were injured during the mass shooting, including a doorman, a young female cashier and college students.
The perpetrator, dressed in all-black, wearing a baseball cap, sunglasses and a mask covering the bottom part of his face, walked up to the entrance at 11.20pm and shot the doorman before making his way into the venue.
He then opened fire on a young female cashier before throwing smoke grenades onto the dancefloor and letting off rounds into the crowd.
First responders from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office and Highway Patrol arrived at 11.23pm and got into a gunfight with the suspect, during which a deputy sheriff was shot and later died from his injuries.
Several minutes later a SWAT team arrived and found 11 victims dead inside. The suspect was also found lifeless after apparently turning the gun on himself.

UPDATE 6:40 a.m. ET: NBC News reports:

A man fired a gun at a bar in a city in Ventura County on Wednesday night, leaving 11 college night revelers dead and fatally wounding a sheriff’s sergeant who responded to the emergency before the gunman was reported dead.
The incident happened during a college night at 11:15 p.m. at the Borderline Bar & Grill at 99 Rolling Oaks Drive in Thousand Oaks, about 40 miles west of Los Angeles, said Capt. Garo Karedjian, a spokesman for the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office.
Ventura County Sheriff Geoff Dean said his agency received multiple calls of shots being fired at the bar.
Minutes later, sheriff’s Sgt. Ron Helus and a California Highway Patrol officer went in to respond to the gunshots. Helus was a 29-year veteran and was looking to retire, Dean said.
“He went in to save lives,” Dean said, his voice cracking. “He went in to save other people.”

UPDATE 7:20 a.m. ET: The Los Angeles Times:

A gunman threw smoke bombs and rained bullets on a crowd of hundreds inside a Thousand Oaks bar that is popular with college students Wednesday night, leaving 12 dead including a Sheriff’s sergeant shot trying to stop the carnage.
The massacre occurred at the Borderline Bar & Grill, with the assailant firing wildly into the crowd.
In addition to the dead, 10 other people may have been injured, according to Sheriff Geoff Dean, who added that it’s too early to know if the shooter took his own life.
The gunman burst into the bar around 11:20 p.m., cloaked in all black.
Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Ron Helus and a California Highway Patrol officer entered the bar first and were met with gunfire from the suspect, whose identity was not immediately known. Helus was shot several times and died at an area hospital early Thursday morning, according to Dean.
Helus, a 29-year veteran of the sheriff’s department, was planning to retire next year. Dean said he died “a hero.”
He is survived by a son and his wife, whom he called before entering the bar, Dean said.
“It’s a horrific incident,” Dean said. “It’s part of the horrors that are happening in our country and everywhere, and I think it’s impossible to put any logic or sense to the senseless.
“This community in my 41 years had never experienced anything like this,” he added.
Witnesses reported a horrifying scene as gunfire echoed through the club and those inside ran for cover, in some cases using chairs to break windows to escape the building. Others hid in bathrooms and an attic as they frantically called loved ones who were hearing reports of the shooting.
The first 911 calls reporting the shooting were received around 11:20 p.m., according to Dean. Helus and the CHP officer arrived on scene and engaged the suspect by 11:26 p.m., he said.
A motive in the shooting was not immediately clear, but Dean said there was no evidence linking the attack to terrorism. Police believe the weapon used was a handgun.
Eleven victims and the shooter were found dead inside the bar by responding emergency personnel.
“It’s a horrific scene in there,” Dean said. “There’s blood everywhere.”

Until we know the identity of the gunman, we cannot know the motive. Although the sheriff said they have not ruled out terrorism, we have no substantial reason to believe that is the motive.

UPDATE 10:20 a.m. ET: Borderline Massacre Gunman Identified as Marine Veteran David Ian Long, 28.



 

Category: California, Crime

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