Shootings in Central California leave Mormon church official, suspect dead

Shootings leaves Mormon official, suspect dead

VISALIA, Calif. — Police are searching for motives behind the actions of a gunman accused of fatally shooting a Mormon church official dying in a shootout with police.

Clay Sannar, 42, a lay bishop with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was doing administrative paperwork on Sunday between church services when a man came into the Visalia church and asked for a leader of the church, said church official Ralph Jordan.

After being directed to Sannar, the attacker shot and killed him, said Visalia police chief Colleen Mestas. Visalia is southeast of Fresno, in California’s Central Valley.

After the shooting, a caller identified himself to police as the attacker. Police responded, and there was a confrontation with several shots exchanged, said Mestas.

The suspect was hit multiple times. He was taken to nearby Kaweah Delta Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, Mestas said. No police were injured.

The suspect did not seem to know Sannar, is not a member of the church, and no one at the church recognized him, said Jordan.

The suspected attacker’s identity has not been released and police have not disclosed any details about a motive.

“We have several detectives out actively investigating this so we can come up with answers, especially for the family,” said Mestas. “It’s just tragic.”

Sannar was the general manager of Soil Basics, a fertilizer company in Visalia, according to the company’s website. He had six boys, including a baby less than six months old.

Other church members described Sannar as a well-loved family man.

“We’re devastated,” said Scott Henriksen, 47, a church member. “There’s only one word: Shocked. This is something that should not happen.”

Hendriksen told The Visalia Times-Delta that he had known Sannar for about 18 years, and he was “Very good, hardworking. A great family man.”