A gunman opened fire at a public transport railyard in San Jose, California, killing eight people. The Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office verified that the suspect, who worked for the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) in Santa Clara, committed suicide before law enforcement arrived on the scene.
Samuel James Cassidy, a 57-year-old California resident who worked for the VTA, has been identified as the now-deceased suspect in the San Jose shooting.
The deceased suspect has been linked to two fires that occurred around the same time as the incident. One of the flames broke out at his house, which was around 8 miles away from the crime scene.
The mass shooting occurred at 101 W. Younger Avenue, between the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office and the San Jose Police Department, and was initially reported at 6:34 a.m. local time.
Eight others, including the accused gunman, have died. A number of people were hurt.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, a California lady who divorced the now-deceased suspect in 2004 said Cassidy had a history of complaining about others at work getting simpler assignments, including those at the mass shooting location.
According to court records obtained by the SF Chronicle, the 57-year-old man abused and raped her when they were together, and that he had "mood swings" during their time together.
President Joe Biden of the United States has urged members of Congress to "take quick action" to address the spike in gun violence and mass shootings in the United States. In honor of the victims, he also ordered flags to be flown at half-staff.
The US Federal Bureau of Inquiry (FBI) is aiding with the investigation and has stated that there is a "large crime scene" to process.
After an FBI bomb squad swept the suspect's home, they discovered hundreds of rounds of ammo.
The motivation of the shooter has yet to be determined by authorities.
The shooting is the bloodiest mass shooting in California's Bay Area since 1993, when a 55-year-old gunman opened fire at an office building in San Francisco, killing nine people, including himself.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, the San Jose massacre is the 232nd mass shooting in the United States this year.
