4 dead, 10 injured in shooting at California banquet hall: sheriff’s office

At least four people were killed and 10 others were wounded in a shooting at a banquet hall in Stockton, California, on Saturday night, local authorities said.

The San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office said it happened shortly before 6 p.m. in the 1900 block of Lucile Avenue in Stockton.

Heather Brent, public information officer for the sheriff’s office, told reporters that the shooting occurred while people were in the banquet hall for a family gathering, calling the shooting “unfathomable.”

He said the ages of the shooting victims range from young people to adults.

No update was provided on the conditions of the injured. Several people were hospitalized, the sheriff’s office previously said.

He said early indications are that it may have been a targeted shooting, although authorities have not yet identified a suspect or made any arrests.

“Our number one priority right now is to identify the suspect in this incident,” Brent said.

Speaking to reporters at the scene, Stockton Mayor Christina Fugazi noted the timing of the shooting, just days after the Thanksgiving holiday.

“Families should be together instead of being in the hospital with their loved ones praying that they survive,” he said.

San Joaquin County District Attorney Ron Freitas said, “A tragedy of this nature is unthinkable. And it completely breaks our hearts. At this time, we are doing everything we can to bring to justice the individual responsible for this.”

Law enforcement agencies responding to assist include the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Stockton, a city of about 320,000 people in central California, is about 45 miles south of Sacramento.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said the governor had been briefed about the “horrific shooting.”