On September 8th, in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan, 40-year-old Thomas Jacob Sanford drove his vehicle into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He then began opening fire and then set the church on fire, killing 4 people and injuring 8 more in the process.
According to a New York Times article, “The attack began just before 10:30 a.m., at a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meeting house in Grand Blanc Township, Mich., a suburb of nearly 40,000 people near Flint” (Walker, Sep 9). The suspect, Thomas Jacob Sanford, crashed his vehicle into the church, took out an assault rifle, and began shooting at the attendees of the church, and then the church was soon engulfed by flames, according to authorities. Within a minute police were at the scene, and 8 minutes later Thomas was pronounced dead after exchanging gunfire with the police. It is believed that the fire was fueled by gasoline or another accelerant, though 3 makeshift explosives were found on the scene.
The shooter, Thomas Jacob Sanford, who also went by the name Jake, used an assault-styled rifle at the shooting, according to authorities. He graduated from Goodrich High School in 2003 and joined the Marine Corps in 2004. He served 4 years, including a deployment to Iraq from August 2007 to March 2008 under Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was promoted to sergeant and had his last duty assignment at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and later left the military in 2008. He was described as quiet and generous by his neighbors. He got married in 2016 to his wife and had a son who is currently 10 years old.
According to NBC News, investigators determined “that at least two of the four victims were fatally shot, police said. Five people were wounded by gunfire and three suffered smoke inhalation” (Remero, Lenthang, Sep 29). The motive for the shooting is currently unknown, and it was never confirmed if Thomas had any personal connection to the church or not, though the FBI is investigating this incident as an “act of violence.” The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives is also aiding in the investigation. The special agent in charge of the ATF in Detroit, James Deir, states that there have been indications that Thomas used some substance to cause and spread the fire, presumably gasoline, and that they also found some explosive devices, but it’s unclear if they were used or not. The identities of the victims are still unknown, and first responders are still searching for additional bodies and evidence.
