Iraq War Vets Behind Separate Deadly Shootings At MI Church, NC Restaurant
At least four people were killed and eight others injured Sunday in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan when a man drove his vehicle through the front doors of a church and opened fire. The night before, a gunman opened fire into a waterfront restaurant in Southport, North Carolina, killing three people and injuring several more.
Authorities are describing both attacks as “targeted,” though not connected. Both of the 40-year-old suspects were Iraq War veterans — reigniting a discussion over gaps in veteran mental health care.
THE LATEST
Officials identified the suspect in the Michigan shooting as Thomas Jacob Sanford. Police say he was “neutralized” in an exchange of gunfire with responding officers after opening fire in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. FBI acting special agent Reuben Coleman called it a targeted act of violence, but did not say specifically who Sanford was targeting.
Authorities said they believed Sanford also intentionally set fire to the church. Victims ranged in age from 6 to 78.
Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye said Monday everyone has now been accounted for.
While Michigan officials would not indicate a suspected motive, the White House said the shooter was an “individual who hated people of the Mormon faith.”
The suspected gunman in the North Carolina shooting has been identified as 40-year-old Nigel Max Edge, a Marine veteran wounded in Iraq in 2006. He has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder and multiple attempted murder counts .
“We understand this suspect identifies as a combat veteran. He self-identifies. Injured in the line of duty is what he’s saying, he suffers from PTSD,” officials said.
BIGGER ISSUE
About a quarter of mass shooters in the U.S. have military background, despite only making up about 7% of the population. That being said, only a small sliver of people with military backgrounds commit mass shootings.
From the Lewiston, Maine bowling alley shooting in 2023 (18 killed), and the 2018 Thousand Oaks bar shooting (12 killed), to early this year car attacks at the Trump hotel in Las Vegas and on Bourbon Street in New Orleans — similar cases of people with military background have surfaced in recent years.
Studies show there’s rarely a single cause behind these acts of violence. Mental health challenges often play a role, sometimes beginning during military service. Struggles with reintegration into civilian life and post-traumatic stress disorder can compound those issues.
“People with a military background are overrepresented as mass shooters in our data,” James Densley, co-founder of The Violence Project, told CBS News. “It bears saying that the vast majority of people who serve in the military go on to lead incredibly successful lives, and obviously, we’re incredibly grateful for that service. And so, this is not a case that joining the military turns you into a mass shooter.”