(EPA)
FRIGHT SCHOOL: An officer comforts a woman near Santa Monica College yesterday, and a cop inspects a bullet-riddled car (inset) after a gunman went on a killing spree that ended with his own death on campus. (
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A crazed gunman killed four people yesterday in a bloody Southern California rampage — just miles from a fund-raiser attended by President Obama — before cops shot him dead in a college library, authorities said.
The carnage left several others injured as the shooter fired wildly at a city bus, cop car and other vehicles before the terror ended in a final hail of bullets on the campus of Santa Monica College.
The heavily armed gunman apparently began the spree just before noon in a house, which was set ablaze, near the campus.
Two bodies found inside are believed to be the father and brother of the shooter, officials said.
A woman who lives across the street heard gunshots, then saw the suspect standing outside the burning home, holding what appeared to be an assault rifle.
“There was a guy standing on the street in front of my house, in full SWAT gear, with a belt full of ammunition and a semiautomatic rifle,” Gerry Cunningham told a local TV station.
The man, who was not identified last night, carjacked a woman after shooting another female driver.
The gunman forced her to drive as he continued to shoot, making her stop so he could fire, cops said.
He shot and killed the driver of an SUV, and wounded its two passengers.
Once on the campus he fatally wounded a woman, authorities said last night.
“I turn around and that’s when he’s just standing there, like he’s modeling for some ammo magazine,” said Joe Orcutt, who works on campus. “He was very calm just standing there, panning around, seeing who he could shoot, one bullet at a time, like target practice.”
But he still wasn’t done.
The madman then headed to the library, where students were cramming for finals, and opened fire, but did not hit anyone.
Cops shot him dead during a firefight in the library, authorities said.
Witnesses on the campus described a harrowing scene.
“We saw a woman get shot in the head,” said administrative assistant Trena Johnson. “I haven’t been able to stop shaking.”
Vincent Zhang, 20, said he heard a woman beg: “No, no. Please, no.”
A man wearing a “Life is a Gamble” sweatshirt was spotted being taken into custody, but it wasn’t clear what role he played.
The shootings happened just three miles from a Santa Monica residence where Obama was speaking at a fund-raising luncheon. A Secret Service spokesman called the shootings a “local police matter.”
