Sunday’s Antioch church shooting on the southern edge of Nashville left one person dead and another six wounded, including the suspected gunman. He has since been identified as a 25-year-old, black Sudanese male (who legally resides in the U.S.) named Emanuel Kidega Samson. Samson is said to have inadvertently shot himself during a struggle by a parishioner who confronted him. The suspect has since been released from the hospital and charged with murder and attempted murder. Now, CBS News reports word from law enforcement officials who viewed a note left by Samson prior to the shooting.
The officials stated that the note “made reference to revenge” for the Charleston church massacre, in which Dylann Roof was convicted last year on 33 charges, including the murder of nine white people and three black people. Neither CBS News nor the Associated Press has viewed the note, but here’s what the outlets know so far about law enforcement’s investigative report:
The report said that “in sum and in no way verbatim,” the note referenced revenge or retaliation for Dylann Roof, the white supremacist who killed nine black worshippers at a South Carolina church in 2015 and has since been sentenced to death. It wasn’t clear what precisely Samson is alleged to have written about the Roof shooting, or whether his note contained other important details that might also speak to a motivation or state of mind.
At the time of the shooting — which is now the subject of a civil rights investigation — around 50 people still lingered in the sanctuary following the day’s final services, and most who were struck by gunfire were older adults. According to local CW-affiliate station KTLA, Samson drove a blue SUV into the church parking lot a few minutes before entering the church. He’s also reported to have “expressed suicidal thoughts,” and he apparently posted a Sunday morning message on Facebook that read, “Everything you’ve ever doubted or made to be believe as false, is real. & vice versa, B.”
Police located four guns on the scene following the shooting. All were purchased legally, including one registered in Samson’s name. Following the shooting, the Metro Nashville Police Department tweeted Samson’s mugshot.
Gunman in church shooting is Emanuel Kidega Samson, 25. He has been released from hospital and will be charged with murder and att murder. pic.twitter.com/VuCUgJ3JIQ
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) September 24, 2017
(Via CBS News, KTLA in Nashville & The Tennessean)