CHICO, Calif. (TCN) — An 18-year-old male has been charged with two open counts of murder in connection with fatal shootings at a public library.
On June 22, police received reports of gunshots at a library, according to KTLA. When officers arrived and entered through the front of the library, the suspect exited through the back, where a perimeter had been established. Two adults, 74-year-old Robert Johnson and 36-year-old Jacob Hull, died in the shootings, and a child was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The Chico Police Department announced that Bradley Scott Sayer was arrested and charged with two open counts of murder in connection with the shootings. According to police, Sayer did not know the victims and was allegedly motivated to commit a massacre like the Columbine High School shootings.
Butte District Attorney Mike Ramsey said Sayer had allegedly done a “deep dive” on social media related to the 1999 incident, according to the Sacramento Bee. Ramsey said Sayer allegedly decided to act as a copycat after he “obviously lost his way” in the social media community.
According to Sid Patel, special agent in charge at the Sacramento FBI field office, Sayer had allegedly done a walk-through of the library right before the shooting and then retrieved a shotgun from his car before going back inside, KRCA reports. He was reportedly wearing a shirt with hand lettering on the front that read “natural selection.” After he was taken into custody, the shotgun was recovered as evidence and additional firearms were allegedly found inside Sayer’s car.
Chico Police Chief Billy Aldridge said all weapons were registered to relatives of Sayer, according to the Sacramento Bee.
The investigation is ongoing.