A gunman threw smoke bombs and rained bullets on a crowd of hundreds inside a Thousand Oaks bar Wednesday night, killing a dozen people including a Ventura County Sheriff’s Department sergeant who was trying to stop the carnage.
Authorities have not yet identified the gunman, who died in the incident, or any of the victims inside the bar.
The gunman was dressed in black when he burst into the Borderline Bar & Grill, a country-music-themed venue that is popular with college students, around 11:20 p.m., according to Sheriff Geoff Dean.
Authorities said Sheriff’s Sgt. Ron Helus and a California Highway Patrol officer entered the bar first and were met with gunfire from the suspect, whose identity was not immediately known. Helus was shot several times and died at an area hospital early Thursday morning, according to Dean.
A 29-year veteran of the department, Helus was planning to retire next year, and Dean said he died “a hero.”
He is survived by a son and his wife, whom he called before entering the bar, Dean said.
“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,” Dean said. “There’s no way to make sense out of the senseless.”
The first 911 calls reporting the shooting were received around 11:20 p.m., according to Dean. Helus and the CHP officer arrived on scene and engaged the suspect by 11:26 p.m., he said.
A motive in the shooting was not immediately clear, but Dean said there was no evidence linking the attack to terrorism. Police believe the shooter used a handgun in the attack.
Authorities did not immediately identify the gunman, but a law enforcement source, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case, described him as a 29-year-old armed with a handgun and a “smoke device.”
The shooter drove his mother’s car to the bar and did not say anything before opening fire, the official said.
Eleven victims and the shooter were found dead inside the bar by responding emergency personnel. It was not immediately clear if the shooter took his own life.
“It’s a horrific scene in there,” Dean said. “There’s blood everywhere.”