Eight people were shot outside a Latter-day Saints meetinghouse in Salt Lake City on Wednesday afternoon, leaving two dead and six others wounded as dozens of mourners attended a funeral service inside the building.
The violence erupted in the parking lot of the church, located in Utah’s capital city, where all victims were adults. As of Wednesday evening, no suspect was in custody, and authorities were working to determine the motive behind the attack.
Salt Lake City Police Chief Brian Redd stated that investigators do not believe the shooting represented a targeted assault on the faith itself. “We don’t believe this was a targeted attack against a religion or anything like that,” Chief Redd told reporters. However, authorities also indicated they do not consider the shooting to have been random in nature, suggesting the gunman may have had specific targets among those present.
Brennan McIntire, who lives in an apartment adjacent to the church parking lot, described hearing gunshots while watching television with his wife. “As soon as I came over, I see someone on the ground,” McIntire recounted. “People are attending to him and crying and arguing.”
The scale of the law enforcement response underscored the severity of the incident. Approximately one hundred police vehicles converged on the scene, while helicopters circled overhead as investigators worked to secure the area and gather evidence.
Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall expressed the community’s shock and grief. “This should never have happened outside a place of worship. This should never have happened outside a celebration of life,” the mayor said.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as the Mormon church, issued a statement through spokesperson Sam Penrod expressing gratitude for first responders while condemning the violence. “We extend prayers for all who have been impacted by this tragedy and express deep concern that any sacred space intended for worship should be subjected to violence of any kind,” the statement read.
The church maintains its headquarters in Salt Lake City, and approximately half of Utah’s 3.5 million residents belong to the faith. Meetinghouses similar to the one where Wednesday’s shooting occurred are commonplace throughout the city and state.
This incident comes barely one month after a separate attack on a Latter-day Saints church in Michigan, where a former Marine killed four people before setting the building ablaze. Federal investigators determined that attack was motivated by anti-religious beliefs specifically targeting the church, placing congregations on heightened alert across the nation.
The investigation into Wednesday’s shooting continues as authorities work to identify and apprehend the suspect responsible for this tragic assault on a community gathered to mourn their dead.
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