Tragedy struck the Grand Blanc community in Michigan on Sunday when a gunman attacked a local church, killing at least four people and injuring eight others, including children.

The incident unfolded during a large service at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, located northwest of Detroit. According to police, the assailant, identified as Thomas Jacob Sanford, 40, a former US Marine and Iraq war veteran, drove his vehicle into the church before opening fire with an assault rifle.

Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye said that Sanford also set fire to the building, which was later engulfed in flames. Two additional bodies were discovered in the debris on Sunday evening, raising the death toll to four.

The suspect was killed in a gunfight with officers who responded swiftly to the scene. Authorities confirmed that investigators will examine Sanford’s home and phone records to determine his motive.

Emergency crews evacuated survivors as the fire raged, and the injured were transported to nearby hospitals. Police urged residents to avoid the area as response operations continued.

US President Donald Trump condemned the attack, calling it “another targeted attack on Christians in the United States” and vowed that the FBI is on the ground investigating. “This epidemic of violence in our country must end, immediately,” he wrote on social media.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer also reacted, saying, “My heart is breaking for the Grand Blanc community. Violence anywhere, especially in a place of worship, is unacceptable.”

The shooting and subsequent blaze have left the community reeling, highlighting once again the alarming frequency of mass violence in American places of worship.