Police in Ventura County, California have identified the suspected shooter in a mass killing at a bar in Thousand Oaks, California, that left thirteen people dead, including a sheriff’s deputy responding to the event and the alleged shooter himself. The man identified as the suspect is Ian David Long, a 28-year-old former Marine. Long had previous contact with local police. The weapon was a .45 caliber Glock handgun, with a magazine that had been extended to allow for more bullets.
The shooting occurred at the Borderline Bar & Grill, a popular hangout for local college students.
Sheriff Geoff Dean said the deputy, Ron Helus, died “a hero.”
Dean added, “It doesn’t matter how safe your community is, it doesn’t matter how low your crime rate is—there are people who just don’t think properly everywhere, I don’t care where you are, and they commit horrific acts like this. There’s no way to process. There’s no way to make sense out of the senseless.”
There have been more than 300 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, according to Business insider.