JUST IN: The shooter at Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church has been identified as a transgender Bernie Sanders supporter.The suspect in a shooting at Joel Osteen's Lakewood megachurch in Texas on Sunday afternoon has been identified as a leftist transgender immigrant from El Salvador.
The suspect has been identified as Genesse Ivonne Moreno, previously known as Jeffrey Escalante, a biological male who identifies as a woman.
Shocker.
The individual was identified as Genesse Moreno who was previously known as Jeffery Escalante.
Moreno, who is clearly unstable, allegedly brought a… pic.twitter.com/R9IxI0LEBM
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) February 12, 2024
The shooter entered the church with a five-year-old boy that he brought along during the 2 p.m. Spanish-language service.
One man was injured, and the child he brought was shot and is in critical condition at the hospital.
Two off-duty officers fatally shot the Moreno at the scene. It is unclear who shot the child, but Houston Police Chief Troy Finner placed the blame on the shooter.
"If it was, unfortunately, and that female, that suspect, put that baby in danger, I'm gonna put that blame on her," Chief Finner told reporters during a press conference in the immediate aftermath. USA: A transgender person brazenly attacked Christians in Houston over the weekend. Genesse Moreno, or “Jeffrey,” opened fire yesterday at Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church. The LGBTQ movement is radicalizing youth across the West into violent anti-Christian extremists. pic.twitter.com/9ioYGXmHQE
— Christian Emergency Alliance (@ChristianEmerg1) February 12, 2024
Fox News reports, "Moreno, who has a lengthy criminal record and was born as a man – Jeffrey Escalante – from El Salvador, was killed after off-duty police officers at the church responded to the incident."
"A search warrant said Moreno pointed an AR-15 at the officers who then fired upon her and killed her in self-defense," the report added.
The shooter had claimed to have a bomb, but no explosives were found at the scene.
“Once she went down, officers reported back to us that she threatened that she had a bomb,” Finner said. “So we searched her vehicle, our bomb squad, and also the backpack (she brought). No explosives were found, but she was also spraying some type of substance on the ground.”
"Free Palestine" was reportedly written on the gun, though police have not revealed a motive for the shooting.
Chief Finner praised the off-duty officers for their quick response.
“She had a long gun and it could have been a lot worse,” the police chief said.
