CNN
—
Investigators are still trying to determine what motivated a 36-year-old mother to open fire with a semi-automatic rifle in a popular Houston megachurch Sunday in an incident that left two people injured, including her 7-year-old son, before she was killed by law enforcement.
The shooter, identified as Genesse Ivonne Moreno, confronted a security guard Sunday outside the Lakewood Church, where well-known televangelist and pastor Joel Osteen preaches, shortly before 2 p.m. Investigators believe she may have revealed a weapon to the guard, who was unarmed, and forced her way in, according to Houston Police Chief Troy Finner.
Wearing a trench coat and backpack, she entered the converted sports arena between church services and opened fire in a hallway with an AR-platform rifle, Christopher Hassig, commander of the Houston police homicide division, said in a Monday news conference. One federal law enforcement source told CNN she fired around 30 bullets.
Two off-duty officers were at the church: a 28-year-old Houston Police Department officer and a 38-year-old agent with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, both with less than five years of service. The two officers engaged the shooter and she was fatally hit, the police chief said.
Moreno’s son, who was shot in the head during the ordeal, is in critical condition at a hospital, Finner said. It’s unclear who fired the shot that wounded the child and CNN has reached out to police for more information.
A 57-year-old man who was also shot in the leg has been released from a medical facility, Finner said.
It remains unclear what led up to the shooting and what motivated Moreno, who has a lengthy criminal history and had been going through a bitter divorce. Investigators say they are attempting to unravel whether the incident was politically motivated or carried out by a mentally disturbed individual, according to a federal law enforcement source.
Special Agent in Charge Douglas Williams of the FBI’s Houston office told reporters Monday, “We’re in the infancy stages of this. I completely understand, we wanna know the motive, how she got the weapon, why she did this,” he said. “We’re not there yet.”
The shooting is just the latest instance of gun violence disrupting American life at places once considered safe. This one was at a place of worship. Others have been at schools, grocery stores, outlet malls, hospitals, college campuses and house parties.
Police say shooter had history of mental health issues and had anti-semitic writings
Hours after the shooting, authorities searched Moreno’s home in Conroe – about 50 miles north of Lakewood Church, the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said Monday.
According to a search warrant obtained by CNN, investigators said the shooter claimed at the scene to have a bomb but had yellow rope similar to a detonation cord and “substances consistent with the manufacture of explosive devices.”
CNN has reached out to the Houston Fire Department for further information.
The shooter used an AR-15 with a “Palestine” sticker on it during the attack, which she legally purchased in December, police said. She also had a .22 caliber weapon in her bag that was not used, according to a federal law enforcement source.
…
This article was originally published by a amp.cnn.com . Read the Original article here. .