Bakersfield shooting spree suspect used massive .50 caliber gun in ‘well-planned’ attack: Officials
The suspect in a string of shootings in Bakersfield, California, that left six people dead on Wednesday has been identified as a 54-year-old man who may have been going through a divorce with his wife, according to local authorities.
Investigators believe that Javier Cazarez, a legal, permanent resident of the United States, may have forced his wife to come with him to the trucking shop to confront people there, Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood said in a press conference Thursday, calling the shooting spree "very calculated."
Cazarez was armed with a .50 caliber handgun, the sheriff said.
"The way this went down, it appeared that this was well-planned," Youngblood said.
Cazarez's attacks were carried out at five difference scenes, according to authorities.
Around 5:20 p.m. local time Wednesday, deputies responded to a trucking business where shots were fired, according to the Kern County Sheriff's Department.
Cazarez then allegedly shot and killed two people, his wife and a man, Youngblood said.
Another man showed up and fired at the suspect, police said. The suspect shot and killed that person as well, police said.
The suspect then went to a residential home, where he allegedly shot and killed two more people, according to police.
The suspect then allegedly carjacked a vehicle with a woman and child inside, but they escaped and were not injured, police said.
A Kern County sheriff's deputy located Cazarez while he was driving on the highway, Youngblood said. Cazarez then pulled into a lot and shot himself in the chest, killing himself, the sheriff said.
Investigators are interviewing witnesses to try to piece together the suspect's relationship to all the victims, Youngblood said.
Domestic violence may have also played a role in the incident, the sheriff said.
"It's just tragic," he said.
The suspect had been driving a white Nissan Altima before he car-jacked the other vehicle, Youngblood said.
Toxicology tests will be done to determine if Cazarez had consumed drugs or alcohol at the time of the shootings.
ABC News' Alex Stone contributed to this report.
