SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A shooting rampage that spanned nearly 5 miles across a Missouri city ended with a car crash and an attack at a gas station Sunday night, leaving five people dead including a police officer and the attacker, authorities said.
Police in Springfield, Mo., said Monday that they first received a call about a shooting at 11:24 p.m. Sunday, in the southeast area of the city, about 220 miles southwest of St. Louis.
While officers were responding, more reports followed about shootings at northern locations, and about 11:43 p.m., a call came in about the Kum & Go gas station and convenience store on East Chestnut Expressway, near U.S. 65.
"In essence, we had a roving active shooter moving from the south side of the city up," Chief Paul Williams of the Springfield Police Department said at a news conference Monday.
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Callers told police that a car had crashed at the scene and that someone with a gun had entered the store and started shooting the people inside.
When the first two police officers arrived at the scene, they were immediately fired on from inside the store, police said. Both officers, Christopher Walsh and Josiah Overton, were injured.
Other responding officers removed Walsh and Overton from the scene, and when the police made their way into the store, they found the attacker dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
They also found three other people shot dead. The police identified them as Troy D. Rapp, 57, an employee of Kum & Go; Shannon R. Perkins, 46, an employee of the WCA Waste Corp.; and Matthew J. Hicks-Morris, 22, a customer. A fourth person was injured and in critical condition on Monday afternoon, the police said in a statement.
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Walsh died at a hospital. Overton was treated for an injury that was not life-threatening and remained in the hospital Monday afternoon, police said.
Police identified the suspect as Joaquin Roman, 31. Jasmine Bailey, a spokeswoman for the Springfield Police Department, said police did not yet know what might have motivated the gunman, but believed the attacker was shooting at different locations while heading north toward the gas station.
"We are still actively investigating multiple crime scenes and dealing with grieving over the loss of one of our own," Williams said.
One of the victims was an employee of Kum & Go, the company said. "There are no words to express the shock and sorrow many of us are feeling," a spokesman, Ariel Rubin, said Monday. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, and their friends and families."
Overton, 25, has been with the Springfield Police Department for two years. Walsh, 32, had served with the department since 2016 and was assigned as a patrol officer.
Walsh was a Springfield native and an Army veteran, and had remained active with the Army Reserves for 10 years, the department said.
"Chris died a hero, rushing in without regard to his own safety to protect members of his community," Williams said. "His courageous actions serve as an example to us all."
The mayor of Springfield, Ken McClure, offered his "deepest sympathy to the families of Officer Chris Walsh and three citizens who lost their lives in the senseless shooting."
He added: "We are indebted and very grateful for our officers who exhibit extreme bravery for our protection. Officer Walsh made the ultimate sacrifice."
The shooting took place in a neighborhood with a mix of businesses, including a strip mall, a container store, fast-food restaurants, and some residences to the south.
A Section on 03/17/2020