Death Toll Rises In Michigan Church Attack
on Sep 28, 2025
At least five are dead and eight are injured after a shooting at a Michigan church on Sunday.
On Sunday morning, September 28, a group of worshippers was gathered at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan, when a suspect drove his pickup into the church.
The suspect, identified as 40-year-old Thomas Jacob Sanford, exited the vehicle and opened fire on the room full of hundreds of parishioners. Sanford used gasoline as an accelerant to light the church on fire, officials said.
@cbseveningnews A gunman killed at least four people and injured eight others at a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Michigan, during a morning service on Sunday. #shooting #church #michigan ♬ original sound – CBSEveningNews
“All indications on this investigation are the suspect used an accelerant of some sort, we believe gasoline, and lit the church on fire,” James Deir of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Detroit office said during a press conference Sunday evening. He added that authorities found what they suspect are explosive devices at the church.
When officers arrived on the scene, the suspect was “neutralized” in the parking lot, leaving no threat to the public.
The initial death toll was listed as two before additional victims were found at the scene.
A total of five people, including the gunman, were killed in the attack. The cause of death for the gunman and two of the parishioners was gunfire. The cause of death for the other two victims is currently unknown. Authorities said there are more individuals unaccounted for, so the death toll is expected to rise again.
Eight victims remain hospitalized – one is in critical condition and the other seven are stable, Grand Blanc Township Police Chief William Renye said at the press conference.
President Trump issued a statement about the attack, calling it “a horrendous shooting” and “yet another targeted attack on Christians in the United States of America.”
THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY
