Police: Suspect in church shooting sent suicidal text
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A man charged in a mass shooting at a Tennessee church expressed suicidal thoughts in June and had a volatile relationship with a woman that twice involved law enforcement this year, according to police records.
Emanuel Kidega Samson, 25, is charged with the fatal shooting of one woman and is expected to face several more charges following the rampage that left six others wounded on Sunday.
Samson wore a tactical vest and fired 12 rounds from a .40-caliber handgun, reloading it once, Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said. He was also carrying a loaded 9 mm handgun and had a .22-caliber pistol and military-style AR-15 rifle in the car he had left running outside the church, police said.
Police did not find any AR-15 ammunition on the scene, Aaron said.
According to an affidavit, Samson told Nashville police after his arrest that he arrived at the church armed and fired upon the building.
Court documents do not indicate whether Samson has an attorney. His first court hearing is Wednesday.
Police in Murfreesboro, about 20 miles southeast of the church, responded to a call from Samson’s father, who had reported that his son had texted him June 27 to say: “Your phone is off, I have a gun to my head, have a nice f------ life.”
Samson’s phone was traced to a Nashville business and officers checked on Samson’s welfare. They described his demeanor as “professional” and said they had “no reason to believe” that he would harm himself, Aaron said.