A Florida man has killed his six grandchildren, his daughter and himself in a mass shooting in the town of Bell. Gilchrist County Sheriff Robert Schultz said the children ranged in age from three months to 10 years.
The killer was identified as 51-year-old Don Spirit. He reportedly called emergency services threatening to harm himself and others.
A deputy sent to investigate made contact with Spirit, who then shot himself dead. Several people were reportedly left alive at the address.
The victims were named as Sarah Lorraine Spirit, 28, Kaleb Kuhlmann, 11, Kylie Kuhlmann, 9, Johnathon Kuhlmann, eight, Destiny Stewart, five, Brandon Stewart, four, and Alanna Stewart, who was born in June.
Their bodies were found "all over the property".
Mr Schultz was quoted by NBC as saying that police had "been out to that residence on numerous law-enforcement occasions".
He added: "I haven’t handled something like this at all.
"And to say this community is not going to be devastated by this ... for a small county, we’re all family here.
"There’s certain things in life you can explain, there’s some things you can't. This is something you can't explain."
Bell is small town of about 350 people about 30 miles (48 km) west of Gainesville.
In 2001 Spirit was sentenced to three years in jail for accidentally shooting his son dead during a hunting trip.
Spirit killed his son Kyle during a trip near Kenansville, Florida, in November 2001, when his Browning rifle accidentally went off.
He pleaded guilty to a felony firearms violation because, having been convicted of a marijuana offence in 1998, he was not allowed to hold firearms.
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