Authorities say the man accused of opening fire at a fast-food restaurant in Idaho is dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, as investigators say quick action by an off-duty law enforcement officer and an armed bystander helped prevent even more bloodshed.
Speaking on Sunday, Matthew Hicks, the Twin Falls police chief, said investigators are confident ۲۴-year-old Chad Williams carried out Saturday’s attack alone.
The shooting left three people dead and seven others injured at the recently opened restaurant in Twin Falls, a southern Idaho city of about ۵۶,۰۰۰ residents. Officials said on Sunday that two of the wounded have been treated and released from the hospital, three remain in stable condition and two are still in critical condition.
According to Hicks, an off-duty state trooper and an armed citizen, whose names have not been released, returned fire, causing the suspect to move away from the restaurant.
“We believe their actions helped drive the suspect away from the scene, preventing further casualties,” the chief said. “We want to take a moment and commend the actions of the off-duty officer and the citizen, and their heroic action to stop this incident.”
Detectives are continuing to investigate what led to the attack, Hicks said, adding that Williams’ family has been fully cooperating with investigators.
The police chief also pushed back on false claims circulating online that incorrectly identified another individual as the gunman, stressing that the person had “no involvement in this incident whatsoever”.
Meanwhile, the owner of the fast-food chain confirmed that one of those killed was an employee.
“My heart is broken, my chest is heavy, my eyes burn from the tears I’ve shed. We lost one of our beautiful Associates tonight,” Lynsi Snyder, the In-N-Out owner, said in a statement released early on Sunday on social media. “In-N-Out will be mourning with the families and praying for them as they tread through a very painful season.”
The FBI is asking anyone with photos or video from Saturday’s shooting to submit the material as investigators continue to piece together what happened.
Police responding to the scene located the suspected gunman’s body near the restaurant, Josh Palmer, the Twin Falls public information officer, said on Saturday. Authorities were still notifying relatives of the victims on Saturday night, Palmer said.
The violence erupted around ۲pm at the newly opened restaurant, located in a busy shopping plaza where hundreds of people were nearby when gunfire broke out.
The Twin Falls resident Haley Dodaro, ۴۳, and her mother went to In-N-Out for lunch Saturday afternoon. While waiting in the drive-thru line, they saw people running across the road and workers bolting out of the restaurant. At first, Dodaro thought there might have been a fire, but then a man directing traffic in a reflective vest said there was a shooter.
“So that’s when we knew there was a shooting. People were running out crying and screaming. It was very scary,” Dodaro said to the Associated Press.
