At least five people were killed on Wednesday in a shooting inside a bank in a small central Florida town, and the suspect is in custody, authorities said.
The 21-year-old suspect, identified as Zephen Xaver, walked into the SunTrust Bank in Sebring, a town of about 10,000 people 95 miles south of Orlando, just after 12:30 p.m. ET (1730 GMT) and began shooting, Sebring Police Chief Karl Hoglund said at a news conference.
Xaver called police himself and said he had fired shots inside the bank, according to authorities.
After negotiators failed to convince the suspect to leave the bank, the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team entered the building and continued to talk to the gunman, police said. He eventually surrended.
“Today has been a tragic day in our community,” Hoglund said. “We’ve suffered significant loss at the hands of a senseless criminal doing a senseless crime.”
No details about the victims have been released. It was not clear whether other people in the bank were injured. {eoa}
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