A shooting incident occurred at a school in the Palermo community of Northern California on Wednesday, December 4th, according to the Butte County Sheriff’s Office. The office stated that two kindergarten students are currently in “extremely critical” condition, while the suspect has been found dead.
The Sheriff’s Office is expected to release the latest updates on the incident at 1 p.m. on Thursday.
Authorities reported that the incident took place around 1 p.m. on Wednesday at Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists.
Law enforcement confirmed that the shooter appeared to have died by suicide, with a handgun found next to the suspect by the California Highway Patrol.
According to CBS News, Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea revealed that two kindergarten students, a 5-year-old boy and a 6-year-old boy, were found shot. He mentioned that these children have been taken to a local hospital and are currently in “very critical” condition.
The identity of the suspect has not been confirmed yet, but the authorities believe there was no prior relationship between the suspect and the victims.
Honea disclosed that the suspect had been driven to the school by an Uber driver. Investigators are questioning the driver to gather more details about how the suspect was transported to the school.
Honea further added that investigators are verifying a claim that the suspect had made a phone call a few days earlier to arrange a meeting with school administrators on Wednesday. Reports suggest that the suspect seemed to be attempting to assist a child with enrollment procedures at that time, but the authorities do not believe he had the child with him at the time.