A drive-by shooting rampage near the University of California, Santa Barbara, left seven people dead including a suspect, according to The Associated Press. Seven more people were hospitalized, including one with life-threatening injuries.
Some of those injured in the shooting were UC Santa Barbara students, according to Washington Post reporter Mark Berman.
Santa Barbara County sheriff Bill Brown said initial reports of gunfire came in around 9:30 p.m., according to local TV station KEYT-TV.
After police responded and exchanged gunfire with the suspect, he veered into a parked car. Police found him dead with a gunshot wound to his head. Brown said it was unclear whether he died from the exchange in gunfire or a self-inflicted wound.
Brown did not release the suspect’s name, but he said he has been identified.
The suspect’s father, however, has confirmed to ABC News that his 22-year-old son Elliot Rodger was the shooter. Rodger was a student at UC Santa Barbara and was reportedly being treated by multiple therapists.
His father is “Hunger Games” second unit director Peter Rodger, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Brown said the suspect was “severely mentally disturbed” and that this was an incident of “premeditated mass murder.” He called him a “mad man.”
“We have obtained and are currently analyzing both written and videotaped evidence that suggests this atrocity was a premeditated mass murder,” Brown said.
One witness told the station that the scene was something out of an “old western shoot-out.”
Another witness told the AP that he thought the gunshots were firecrackers:
Brown said police are looking into a video posted on YouTube as possible evidence. In the video, entitled “Elliot Rodger’s Retribution,” a man goes on a rant against women who he says rebuffed his advances. He also makes outward threats the girls.
Brown said police were investigating “both written and videotaped evidence that suggest this atrocity was a premeditated mass murder.”
When asked if that evidence included the “Elliot Rodger’s Retribution” video, Brown said, “We’re investigating to determine that at this time. But it would appear that that is connected with this crime.”
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7 Dead In 'Mad Man's' Drive-By Shooting Rampage Near College Campus
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