Two days after worshippers at a church in Michigan were attacked in a hail of bullets and a wall of flames, authorities asked for patience as the search for a motive continued and a community reeled from the violence that claimed four lives.
The shooting unfolded the morning of Sept. 28 when police say gunman Thomas Jacob Sanford drove a truck bearing American flags through the front of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints chapel in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan, and opened fire on those inside. He is believed to have used gasoline to light a fire, which reduced much of the church to rubble.
Hundreds of people were inside the chapel at the time of the shooting, which is being investigated as an "act of targeted violence," according to the FBI. Four people were killed and eight others were injured, with one in critical condition. Sanford was killed in a gunfight with police.
Sanford, 40, was a military veteran who lived in nearby Burton, Michigan. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in an appearance on "Fox and Friends" that Sanford "hated people of the Mormon faith" but did not elaborate. A local politician said a week before the attack Sanford went on a tirade against the church and referred to Mormons as "the Antichrist."
