E-Paper
Who was Glenn Litton? Homeless man opens fire at California school, injures 2 children before fatally shooting himself
Litton wrote he was deploying a “countermeasure involving child executions” in response to “America’s involvement with genocide and oppression of Palestinians.”
A gunman in California wounded two children, six and five, at a school before turning the gun on himself. Police said the shooting at the school, affiliated with the Seventh-Day Adventist Church near Oroville, was a targeted attack.
Butte County, California, Sheriff Kory Honea identified the victims as Roman Mendez, 6, and Elias Wolfard, 5, according to ABC News. They were attending the Oroville school when 56-year-old Glenn Litton opened fire. The children are in critical but stable condition, and were being treated at a trauma centre, BBC reported.
Investigators believe Litton targeted the school because of its affiliation with the church and as a response to the conflict in Gaza. The shooting at the Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists took place shortly after 13:00 local time on Wednesday, December 4.
Litton had reportedly scheduled a meeting with a school administrator to discuss the enrollment of his grandson. Honea pointed out that this was a "guise" to gain access to the school. In reality, Litton had no grandson.
The meeting was seemingly cordial, but Litton later stormed into the playground of the school and began to shoot. He wounded the two children before fatally shooting himself. First responders found Litton dead, with the handgun near his body. The other students of the school were eventually transferred to a church and reunited with their families.
Honea previously has said that investigators "have received some information that leads us to believe that the subject responsible for the shooting targeted this school because of its affiliation with the Seventh-Day Adventist Church". He added that authorities believe the attack was an isolated incident.
Who was Glenn Litton?
Litton, a homeless man who was reportedly mentally ill, wrote in a chilling note before the attack that he was deploying a “countermeasure involving child executions” in response to “America’s involvement with genocide and oppression of Palestinians.” In his writings, he called himself a lieutenant of “the international alliance.” Police believe these deranged scribblings stemmed from his mental health issues.
“Countermeasure involving child executions has now been imposed at the Seventh Day Adventist school in CA, U.S. by the international alliance,” he wrote in the note that investigators found, New York Post reported.
He added, “I, Lieutenant Glenn Litton of the alliance carried out countermeasure in necessitated response to America’s involvement with genocide and oppression of Palestinians along with attacks towards Yemen.”
Honea said that Litton “pulled information from various sources, and it all came together in his mind to create a reality that is false.” As a child, Litton attended a separate Seventh Day Adventist school.
Butte County officials revealed that the suspect had been in and out of prison since he was a juvenile. He had been involved in incidents of theft, identity theft, and also faced some drug charges.
Back in 2002, Litton was caught with disguises, a bullet-proof vest, shackles, and walkie-talkies. He had also made internet searches indicating his plans to carry out some sort of mass-violence attack using guns and explosives. He was sentenced to eight years for 12 counts of forgery, ID theft, and theft over that incident the following year. However, he was released three years later in 2006.
As recently as on November 12, Litton was arrested near San Francisco for stealing a moving truck. He was subsequently booked into the San Mateo County jail, and let loose on his own recognizance from the San Bernardino jail after pleading not guilty to separate burglary charges on November 21. He then made his way to the Oroville area, before carrying out the latest school shooting. Litton had reportedly also considered an attack on a separate Seventh Day Adventist location, cops said.
