ROSEBURG, Ore., Oct. 2 (UPI) — The man who opened fire on Oregon’s Umpqua Community College, Chris Harper Mercer, asked victims about their religion before shooting, multiple news sources reported.
At least 10 people were killed and seven others injured after Mercer, 26, opened fire in a classroom Thursday.
While reloading his handgun, he asked victims to stand before asking them if they were Christian. Anyone who responded “yes” was shot in the head.
One witness’s father said Mercer said, “Good, because you’re a Christian, you’re going to see God in just about one second,’” Another witness said Mercer told them, “This won’t hurt much” or “This won’t hurt for long.”
If they didn’t answer or said “other,” they were shot somewhere else in the body, usually the leg, one of the victim’s relatives said. Another victim said Mercer said, “I’ve been waiting to do this for years,” before shooting a professor point blank.
Mercer was killed in a firefight with Douglas County sheriff’s deputies at the college in rural Oregon. Local police did not identify Mercer as the shooter, but other law enforcement sources confirmed his name.
Mercer apparently wore the same thing every day — combat boots, camo pants and a plain brown or white T-shirt. Mercer was among five students listed in the 2009 graduating class at Switzer Learning Center, the California-based newspaper The Daily Breeze reported. The school teaches students with emotional disturbances, autism spectrum disorders and behavioral problems.
Neighbors said Mercer lived “most of his life” with his mother in the Los Angeles area and had recently moved to Oregon. He was described as a reclusive man.
He apparently spent a lot of time on the Internet. On his MySpace page, he expressed interest in the Irish Republican Army, an outlawed paramilitary group committed to overthrowing Northern Ireland.
He also appeared on a dating website, describing himself as an “introvert” with a dislike for “organized” religion.
Federal investigators are trying to determine Mercer is connected to a thread on 4chan that discussed a school stooting. The 4chan website is an anonymous group of web forums with users who do not have to identify themselves.
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