Gunman kills at least five in series of shootings in California: police

An unidentified gunman shot and killed five people including his wife in a series of shootings on Wednesday in Southern California before taking his own life, according to authorities.

The Associated Press reports that the shootings, which took place at a home and a business in Bakersfield, Calif., are not suspected to be random incidents, adding that a motive for the killings was not yet known.

{mosads}“Obviously, these are not random shootings,” Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood told a local news station, according to the AP.

Five people including the gunman’s wife were killed after the unidentified man and his wife showed up at a trucking company, the news service reports, after which the man drew a gun and shot one victim before turning the gun on his wife.

“The suspect, the husband, shot the person at the trucking company and then turned and shot his wife,” Youngblood told reporters.

Another man who was present for the initial shootings was also targeted, according to police, who say the suspect then entered a nearby residence, killing a man and woman inside.

After killing five victims, the man was confronted by a Kern County Sheriff’s deputy, according to the AP, after which the man turned the gun on himself and committed suicide.

Other than the gunman’s wife, it was unclear whether the victims had any connection to the gunman.

Youngblood told reporters that his department was interviewing about 30 bystanders who witnessed the shootings. One woman and a child, who say they were carjacked by the suspect before his death, were able to escape the shootings.

“This is the new normal,” Youngblood said at a press conference. “Six people lost their lives in a very short period of time. This is highly unusual.”

MORE: Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood says Bakersfield shootings that have left 6 people dead “are not random shootings.” https://t.co/GPIma7Qvat pic.twitter.com/9CJ2SU7fih

— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) September 13, 2018

–Updated at 8:35 a.m.