2 killed in California shooting near IRS office

Chelcey Adami | The Salinas Californian

SALINAS, Calif. — An older couple died and younger two family members were wounded seriously in a shooting Thursday, authorities said.

The 50-year-old gunman, whose estranged wife is in critical condition at a local hospital, followed her to the parking lot of the Social Security office, confronting her and the others before shooting them. She likely had moved the 330-plus miles Garden Grove, Calif., to Salinas to get away from her husband, police said.

The youngest victim, a 28-year-old male cousin of the 32-year-old wife, needed to go to the Social Security office, Salinas Police Cmdr. Vince Maiorana said. The wife's uncle was 64 and her aunt was 51.

“This incident was purely domestic violence,” he said.

Maiorana would not release the names of the shooter and his victims, pending notification of family. But the gunman surrendered when police arrived, and he later confessed, the commander said.

The suspect is being booked into Monterey County Jail on multiple counts of murder. Police are continuing to questioning him about his motive.

Multiple witnesses called 9-1-1 at around 8:30 a.m. PT as the incident unfolded in an industrial park near Social Security and IRS offices and some agricultural businesses. They were able to point out the shooter to authorities.

Contributing: The Associated Press