SUMTER, S.C. (WSAV/WBTW) — Two men and three children are dead after what authorities in South Carolina said appears to be a domestic-related shooting.
According to the Associated Press, a former soldier entered a home with a key belonging to the mother of his children before exiting with a firearm. He then killed an active duty servicemember outside the residence who was talking with the children’s mother before entering the home, going up the stairs of the residence and shooting his three children. The man then fatally shot himself.
Police say that the adult male victim was a coworker of the children’s mother who was in the backyard at the residence when he was killed.
It happened just before 11:30 p.m. Tuesday in Sumter, police said in a Facebook post.
Police said the shooter is believed to be one of the men who died and that there is no apparent threat to the public.
Police say all the victims died of an apparent gunshot but investigators are still trying to determine exactly why the shooting occurred.
No additional information was immediately available. The investigation is continuing.
