At least 4 killed as US shooter attacks Mormon church and sets it on fire

A gunman attacked a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan, on Sunday morning, killing four people and injuring eight others before being shot dead by police. The suspect, identified as 40-year-old former Marine Thomas Jacob Sanford, rammed his truck into the church, opened fire on worshippers, and set the building ablaze with gasoline. The fire caused part of the structure to collapse, forcing rescuers to search the ruins for more possible victims.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer called the attack “unacceptable,” while President Donald Trump condemned it as “a targeted assault on Christians” and warned of an “epidemic of violence.”

The tragedy adds to the relentless toll of gun violence in the United States. In 2023 alone, 46,728 Americans were killed by firearms, including suicides and homicides an average of about 128 deaths every day. Communities across the country continue to grieve as faith spaces, schools, and public places become recurring sites of deadly shootings.