Three people were gunned down at a Dollar General store in Jacksonville, Florida, on Saturday afternoon in what police say was a racist rampage targeting Black people.
“Plainly put, this shooting was racially motivated and he hated Black people,” Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters told reporters at a press conference.
The suspect, who has not yet been named, was described as a white man in his mid-20s armed with an AR-style rifle and handgun, one of which was adorned with a swastika. After killing the victims, the suspect turned a gun on himself.
All three victims were Black.
Sherri E. Onks, the Special Agent in Charge of the Jacksonville FBI Field Office, confirmed at the conference that the incident will be investigated as a hate crime and a federal civil rights investigation has been opened.
Waters said the suspect left Clay County headed to Jacksonville before noon on Saturday and at 1:18 p.m., he texted his father telling him to check his computer. The alleged shooter’s parents later called the Clay County Sheriff’s Office to notify them that their son had authored several manifestos—one to his parents, one to the media, and one to federal agents, Waters added.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Daily Beast on Saturday.
“Portions of these manifestos detail the shooter’s disgusting ideology of hate,” Waters said. “This is a dark day in Jacksonville’s history. Any loss of life is tragic, but the hate that motivated the shooter’s killing spree adds an additional layer of heartbreak.”
There is no evidence that the suspect is part of any larger group, and Waters said police know he acted alone.
Sources cited by local outlet News 4 Jax said the suspect was spotted at Edward Waters University, a historically Black college, putting on a ballistics vest just prior to the shooting.
The alleged shooter’s history involves a domestic incident that did not result in arrest in 2016 and an emergency 72-hour mental health admissions under the Baker Act in 2017.
