The gunman who pulled out a shotgun during a church service in Texas on Sunday and opened fire on worshipers appeared to be in disguise when he entered the sanctuary, according to a woman who said he made her feel uncomfortable when he sat feet away from her.
Two men were killed when the gunman opened fire at West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, as more than 240 parishioners were inside. Within seconds, he was shot to death by two congregants who fired back.
At a news conference Sunday night, White Settlement Police Department Chief J.P. Bevering told reporters the gunman – who has yet to be identified – had sat down in a pew before getting up, taking out a shotgun and firing at a parishioner, who was killed.
FBI special agent in charge, Matthew DeSarno, said the gunman had been arrested multiple times in the past. He said he was “relatively transient” but had roots in the area.
A woman who was seated near the gunman said something seemed off from the moment the gunman entered the church. Besides never seeing the man in church before, he also appeared to have a beard and a wig that looked fake.
“I should have listened to my gut,” Isabel Arreola, 38, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “While he was there, I couldn’t sing. I couldn’t pray. There was just something not right about him. But at the same time, I thought that maybe I was being too hard.”