Six people were killed in a series of shootings across multiple locations in Muscatine, Iowa on Monday in what police believe stemmed from a domestic dispute, BBC reported.
The suspected gunman was also found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The Muscatine Police Department identified the suspect as Ryan Willis McFarland, 52, of Muscatine. All six victims are believed to be family members of McFarland, though police have not released the names or ages of those killed.
According to BBC, police received a report of a shooting just after noon on Monday. Officers responding to a residence discovered four people with gunshot wounds, all of whom were pronounced dead at the scene. McFarland had already fled the property before police arrived.
Officers located McFarland shortly after on a riverfront trail near a pedestrian bridge. He had sustained a self-inflicted gunshot wound and, despite receiving medical aid, was pronounced dead at the scene.
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The carnage did not end there. Detectives subsequently discovered another man dead from an apparent gunshot wound at a separate residence, BBC reported. A further search led officers to a local business, where they found a sixth victim, also dead of an apparent gunshot wound.
"Preliminary findings indicate the shootings stemmed from a domestic-related dispute," the Muscatine Police Department said in a statement, according to BBC. "All victims are believed to be family members of the deceased suspect."
The Muscatine Community School District confirmed two of the victims are employees at the district and two others are students.
The shootings unfolded across multiple locations within the city, pointing to a calculated series of attacks rather than a single isolated incident.
The deaths have shaken the eastern Iowa community of Muscatine, a city of about 23,000 people located along the Mississippi River.
"Today I simply do not have the words -- this act of evil and what it has done to our community," the police chief said.
The investigation remains ongoing, and police have not yet provided further details on the nature of the domestic dispute or the relationships between the victims and the suspect.
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