2 killed in W.California shooting rampage

By:Xinhua
update:October 25,2017

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 25 -- Two people were killed and several others injured, including a highway patrol officer, in a shooting spree Monday in Lake County, about 140 km north of San Francisco, western California, the United States, local media reported.

The two men killed were found in a residential neighborhood that the gunman has a connection to, Lake County Sheriff Brian Martin was quoted by local media as saying. The names of the victims were not released immediately.

The gunman was arrested after opening fire at multiple locations, including a winery, several houses and gas stations during the shooting rampage, police said.

The police identified the suspect as Alan Ashmore, who is 61 years old.

"There are a total of seven different crime scenes," Martin said.

The first reports of gunfire were made in an area near the Clearlake Oaks post office.

A female resident was shot in the same area and the suspect allegedly fired into several other residences before shooting an unidentified person at a nearby gas station.

Then, the gunman opened fire at people at another gas station, but there were no known injuries at that location, Martin said.

Additionally, the police were reported that the gunman fired his gun at the employees of a winery, but it's not known whether any injuries were caused.

A California Highway Patrol (CHP) officer responded to the incident and was shot in the leg. He was later rushed to a hospital without life-threatening injury.

Two other people suffered minor injuries and are being treated at a local hospital, Martin said.

Ashmore was detained on two homicide counts and multiple other counts of assault with a firearm. He was found to have hide several weapons in his car, and the police believed Ashmore used at least one of them in the killings, Martin added.

The motive of the shooting rampage was still under investigation, Martin said.