A shooter opened fire during a baby naming ceremony at a Pittsburgh synagogue today, killing 11 people and wounding several others, including police officers. Officials say luckily no children were killed. Police were called just before 10 AM to the “Tree of Life” synagogue. The FBI are commending the fast actions of Pittsburgh Police who ran directly into danger to apprehend the gunman. Four officers were injured doing so, at least 2 were shot. They say if if it wasn’t for their quick response, the death toll would have been much higher.
Police have identified the shooter as Robert Bowers of Pittsburgh. He is currently in hospital being treated for multiple gunshot wounds. They expect to formally charge Bowers today and believe he acted alone. The FBI says the gunman was not known to law enforcement before the shooting. Officials says Bowers had an assault rifle and 3 handguns on him at the time of his arrest.
A law enforcement official said the gunman made anti-Jewish comments during the shooting.
Authorities said the shooting will be prosecuted as a hate crime.
Now, federal investigators are combing through Bower’s social media postings, saying they hope to find clues about what motivated him to kill.
