FBI calls Michigan church shooting a ’targeted attack’ as toll rises to four dead, eight wounded

The FBI called a gunman's assault on a Mormon church in Michigan on Sunday a "targeted attack" as the death toll rose to four as more victims were found in the charred remains of the chapel.

Police said eight were also wounded when 40-year-old Thomas Jacob Sanford rammed his car into Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Mich., then opened gunfire and set fires.

Sanford, a former Marine who served in Iraq, was killed during a gunfight with officers, Police Chief William Reyne said.

Reyne did not specify a motive at a news conference on Sunday evening.

The FBI took the lead in investigating the shooting and is treating it as “as an act of targeted violence,” said Reuben Coleman, the acting special agent in charge of the bureau's Detroit  office.

President Donald Trump monitored the tragedy and condemned the violence in a place of worship.

"PRAY for the victims, and their families. THIS EPIDEMIC OF VIOLENCE IN OUR COUNTRY MUST END, IMMEDIATELY!” Trump wrote on his TruthSocial platform. 

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer likewise condemned the shooting.

“Violence anywhere especially in a place of worship, is unacceptable,” she said.