Gunman kills seven in Santa Barbara
Saturday, 24 May 2014
A gunman has killed seven people in drive-by shootings near the Californian city of Santa Barbara, US police say.
The shootings took place late on Friday in Isla Vista near the University of California-Santa Barbara campus, according to a news agency.
The suspected gunman was found dead in his car with a bullet wound. It is unclear whether it was self-inflicted.
Police are looking into a possible link with a Youtube video in which a young man complains of repeated rejection by women and threatens to take revenge.
Seven other people are in hospital, and being treated for bullet wounds.
The shootings occurred at several sites in the town of Isla Vista, and there were nine crime scenes, police said.
Witnesses described seeing a black BMW speeding through the streets, with shots being fired at people.
Student Michael Vitek told local TV station KEYT he had seen one woman being fatally struck and another critically injured. "I heard shots, scream, pain," he said.