Ten dead, including suspect, after shooting at California light rail yard, cops say
A shooting Wednesday morning at a California light rail yard killed nine people and left others with “major injuries,” authorities say.
The suspect, who is also dead, was an employee at the facility, Santa Clara County Sheriff’s spokesperson Russell Davis said at a briefing.
The nine killed died of gunshot wounds, he said.
The Santa Clara medical examiner’s office identified the nine slain as Paul Delacruz Megia, 42; Taptejdeep Singh, 36; Adrian Balleza, 29; Jose Dejesus Hernandez III, 35; Timothy Michael Romo, 49; Michael Joseph Rudometkin, 40; Abdolvahab Alaghmandan, 63; Lars Kepler Lane, 63; and Alex Ward Fritch, 49.
The gunman, who has not been officially identified, died of a suspected self-inflicted gunshot wound, Davis said. Deputies did not exchange gunfire with him.
He was found with two semiautomatic handguns and 11 magazines, Sheriff Laurie Smith told KRON. Investigators also found bomb-making materials in his work locker and home.
“This could have been a lot worse than what it was, unfortunately,” Davis said, crediting active-shooter training undergone by law enforcement for the quick response.
San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo said the quick response by deputies and police “undoubtedly” saved lives.
There are signs of explosive devices inside the building and bomb squads are checking the facility, delaying the investigation, Davis said.
“We’re trying to clear out every room and every crevice of that building,” he said.
Deputies and police entered the building while shots were being fired, said Smith, whose sheriff’s headquarters adjoins the light rail yard.
“We have some very brave officers and deputies,” Smith said. She said victims were shot in two buildings.
Davis could not say how the shooting unfolded or if the gunman had targeted specific co-workers. No motive has been established.
“Everything is preliminary,” Davis said earlier, according to The Mercury News. “It just happened.”
The FBI, federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and U.S. Department of Homeland Security are assisting with the investigation.
An official with the FBI described it as a “very sizable crime scene” that may take days to process.
‘A horrible tragedy’
Officers responded to reports of a shooting at 6:34 a.m. at the Valley Transportation Authority light rail yard in San Jose, The Mercury News reported.
Early reports said the gunfire broke out during a union meeting, but Raj Singh, the recording and financial secretary for Amalgamated Transit Union local 265, told the publication that such meetings are held at the union hall, not at the work site.
Multiple tactical teams and firefighters helped evacuate workers from the facility, Davis said at a 9:30 a.m. Pacific time news briefing.
“A horrible tragedy has happened today,” said Glenn Hendricks, chair of the VTA board of directors, at the briefing. “Our thoughts and love go out to the VTA family, the organization and what they have had to go through.”
Hendricks said the shooting took place in the maintenance yard, not the control center, but light rail service was suspended at noon Pacific time.
“VTA is a family,” an emotional Hendricks said. “People in the organization know everyone.”
“This is a horrific day for our city,” said Liccardo, the mayor, who vowed to do everything he could to “ensure this never happens again in our city.”
A vigil will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday at San Jose City Hall, he said.
“We are in a very dark moment,” Liccardo said.
In a later interview with reporters, Liccardo said a fire had been reported at the home of the suspected gunman.
“We ask for people’s prayers,” said VTA spokesperson Brandi Childress, KGO reported. Childress said the facility is not open to the general public.
The agency operates three light rail lines and more than 70 bus routes, USA Today reported.
It employs more than 2,000 people, according to a VTA informational flier.
Politicians weigh in
Gov. Gavin Newsom said on Twitter that California officials are “monitoring this situation closely.”
“There’s a sameness to this and I think a numbness that we’re all feeling,” Newsom said later in San Jose. “It begs the question, ‘what the hell is going on in the United States of America?’”
“We’ve become a nation preoccupied with guns, and it’s a bad thing, because they are more misused than used properly, if there is a proper way to use a weapon to kill somebody,” said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, after the shootings, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. “But the innocent people are what I feel for.”
California Assemblyman Evan Low, D-Silicon Valley, wrote on Twitter that his “heart breaks for the people killed and injured this morning.”
“But the threat of gun violence is a constant threat in American life — one that we have become so accustomed to that active-shooter exercises are taught in schools and workplaces with the same frequency as fire drills,” Low wrote.
“And I hope we also acknowledge that the status quo on gun violence in this country is unsustainable if we are truly committed to building a safe and just society,” he wrote.
“I’m just so in shock,” said Santa Clara County Supervisor Mike Wasserman at a briefing. He said flags will be flown at half-staff in the county.
This story was originally published May 26, 2021 at 11:50 AM with the headline "Ten dead, including suspect, after shooting at California light rail yard, cops say."