Lakewood Church Shooter Identified As Genesse Moreno As Policemen Confirmed The Rifle She Was Holding.
Police said that Genesse Ivonne Moreno entered the Houston megachurch with a small child and opened fire
Lakewood Megachurch shooting eyewitness describes moment gunshots fired
The shooter who opened fire inside Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church in Houston has now been identified by police as Genesse Ivonne Moreno – a 36-year-old woman who allegedly carried out the shooting using an assault-style rifle with the word “Palestine” across it.
Law enforcement officials held a press conference on Monday, one day after Moreno allegedly entered the megachurch with her seven-year-old son and opened fire with a rifle.
The shooting unfolded at around 1.50pm on Sunday, just minutes before a Spanish-language sermon was scheduled to begin.
Christopher Hassig, with the Houston Police Department’s homicide unit, said that Moreno pulled up outside the church at 1.53pm in her white vehicle.
She opened the door and pulled the seven-year-old boy out of the back seat.
Dressed in a trench coat and carrying a bag, Moreno and the boy entered the building on the west side.
Police said that she is believed to have pointed her weapon at a security guard to get into the building.
Once inside, she began shooting in the hallway of the church, firing off multiple rounds.
Two off-duty police officers returned fire, shooting and killing Moreno.
During the gunfire, the seven-year-old boy suffered a gunshot wound to the head.
He was taken to a hospital in critical condition. A second victim – a 57-year-old man – was also shot in the leg.
During the incident, police said that Moreno had also threatened that she had a bomb. But when police searched her vehicle and backpack, they found no explosives.
Chief Finner said at a press conference on Sunday that the woman was also spraying “some type of substance on the ground,” but did not provide details about what the substance could be.
The motive for the shooting remains unclear but Moreno, who NBC News reported previously used the male name Jeffrey Escalante, had a lengthy criminal record.
Previous arrests included charges for assault, marijuana possession, forgery, theft, evading and unlawful carrying of a weapon.
On Sunday night, officials including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) searched a home connected to the suspect in Conroe, Texas.
The home is about 50 minutes north of Lakewood Church. Evidence was collected from the property, CNN reported.
Lakewood Church is one of the largest Christian churches in the US with a capacity to seat about 16,000 people. Mr Osteen, its lead pastor, is one of the US’s most notable religious leaders.
At a news conference following the incident, he said: “It could’ve been a lot worse. We know God’s in control.”
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