Robert Gregory Bowers opened fire with an AR-15 rifle and three handguns at a Pittsburgh synagogue on Saturday, killing eight men and three women before a tactical police team tracked him down and shot him, the Associated Press reports. Bowers owned all of the guns legally and had a license to carry them. He apparently posted an anti-Semitic message on a social media account a few minutes before he opened fire. He expressed hatred of Jews during the rampage and later told police that “I just want to kill Jews” and that “all these Jews need to die,” authorities said. The Anti-Defamation League called it the deadliest U.S. attack on Jews. Six people were injured, including four police officers.
It isn’t clear whether Bowers, who underwent surgery, has an attorney. He is a long-haul trucker who worked for himself, said U.S. Attorney Scott Brady. He had no apparent criminal record, and it appears he acted alone. Bowers was charged with criminal homicide, aggravated assault and ethnic intimidation. He was also charged in a 29-count federal criminal complaint that included counts of obstructing the free exercise of religious beliefs resulting in death — a federal hate crime — and using a firearm to commit murder. Federal prosecutors intend to pursue the death penalty. Of the six survivors, four remained in the hospital Sunday night, and two — including a 40-year-old officer — were in critical condition. Barry Werber found himself hiding in a storage closet after Bowers tore through the synagogue. “I don’t know why he thinks the Jews are responsible for all the ills in the world, but he’s not the first and he won’t be the last,” said Werber, 76. “Unfortunately, that’s our burden to bear. It breaks my heart.” Of the dead, the youngest was 54, the oldest 97. The toll included professors, dentists and physicians.