The person who opened fire at Joel Osteen’s Houston-area megachurch on Sunday has been named as Genesse Ivonne Moreno, 36, according to the Houston Chronicle, as authorities revealed that “Free Palestine” was written on the weapon used in the attack. .
Moreno entered the Lakewood Church shortly before a Spanish-language service was scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. with a boy, believed to be about 4 or 5 years old, and opened fire as hundreds of people sat in the pews.
Two off-duty officers guarding the church – a Houston police officer and an agent with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission – returned fire and shot Moreno dead, Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said Sunday.
The boy was also shot and was hospitalized in critical condition.
When asked if the child was shot by an officer, Finner declined to speculate, but said, “The woman, the suspect, put the baby in danger. I will put the blame on him.”
His relationship to Moreno was not immediately known.
Moreno has a criminal history dating back to 2005 and was previously arrested under the name Jeffery Escalante, according to local station KHOU, raising questions about whether the shooter switched before or at the time of the attack.
A 2022 photo taken while Moreno was incarcerated in Fort Bend County, Texas, lists his gender as female, according to the Mugshots Zone website.
Genesse Ivonne Moreno, 36, has been identified as the shooter at Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church. Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office Two off-duty officers confronted the active shooter and killed him at the scene. via REUTERS
A 57-year-old bystander was also shot in the leg, authorities said, adding that the man was hospitalized and in stable condition.
Although law enforcement told ABC about Moreno’s gun emblazoned with “Free Palestine,” the motive for the shooting remains unclear, and police are still investigating.
A chilling video captures the start of a Spanish-language service that is suddenly interrupted by a barrage of gunfire. Detectives said Moreno may have fired as many as 12 shots into the church before he was taken down.
Displaced parishioners react outside television evangelist Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church after a shooting in Houston, Texas. via REUTERS
Before Moreno succumbed to his injuries, he poured an unknown substance on the floor and told officers there was a bomb, but a search of the area by a hazmat team found no evidence of explosives.
Hours after the shooting, FBI agents and other law enforcement searched Moreno’s home in Conroe. Authorities said they had reason to believe there were firearms, ammunition and explosives inside the home, according to a search warrant obtained by KHOU.
A car was also towed from the home, the station reported.
Osteen, 60, said during a news conference Sunday that the tragedy could have been worse had it happened during an early or late Sunday service, which draws more people.
“I can only imagine… if it happened during the 11 o’clock service,” he said at the scene.
The church, founded by the late father Osteen, is attended by 45,000 people each week, making it the third largest megachurch in America.
This is a developing story, please check back for updates.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
