State police are releasing further information on a mass shooting in a small Arkansas town Friday.
The shooting took place at the Mad Butcher grocery store in Fordyce. Three people died in the immediate aftermath of the incident. On Saturday, it was announced that the death toll has risen to four.
In total, 12 other civilians were injured, with four victims still hospitalized. Two police officers were also shot; both have since been released from the hospital. On Sunday, Arkansas State Police gave further details on the incident to members of the media.
State Police Director Col. Mike Hagar did not mention the alleged shooter by name. He said, during the incident, the suspect fired rounds “indiscriminately at both customers and employees," using a shotgun. The shooting happened inside the grocery store.
The whole incident lasted a few minutes, as police were able to quickly dispatch to the scene. One of the officers who responded to the shooting was Dallas County Sheriff Mike Knoedl.
Police opened fire as the suspect left the grocery store. He was then subdued and taken to the hospital. The suspect is now in the Ouachita County Jail and not the closer Dallas County Jail. Hagar said this was to create some “separation.”
Hagar said the crime was “personal” because it was a small town where everyone is well-acquainted. The police are said to have known both the shooter and the victims.
Police said they are still working to sort out the suspect's motive, but there is so far no evidence that the shooter targeted any of the victims specifically. As best as the police can tell, this was a “random senseless act.”
One of the victims was 23-year-old Callie Weems, a nurse at the nearby Dallas County Medical Center. During the shooting, Weems stayed to administer first aid. She was killed while trying to help another gunshot victim.
“During the incident we saw the very best and the very worst of humanity,” Hagar said.
The suspected shooter is currently in police custody, and is facing four counts of capital murder. Hagar said he could not comment on the prosecution but says the death penalty will be “on the table.”
