Texas church shooter Devin Kelley started ‘dating’ her when she was 13, says woman

Gunman continued to harass Brittany Adcock with calls and messages for years afterwards

Devin Kelley opened fire in a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas (AFP)

The gunman who killed 26 people at a Texas baptist church and wounded dozens more has been accused of dating a woman when she was 13.

Details of the life of 26-year-old Devin Kelley, who killed himself after firing rounds into crowds at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, are beginning to emerge in the days after the attack.

One woman, Brittany Adcock, who is now 22, said Kelley harassed her for years after a brief relationship with her when she was a teenager.

Ms Adcock said she dated Kelley nearly ten years ago when he was 18 and she was just 13, Reuters reported.

“It wasn’t long after my 13th birthday but it didn’t deter him despite him being a man,” she told the Mirror, saying he approached her at a shopping centre.

“Devin would beg to take pictures of me naked - to please him, I agreed.

“I was so naive. He was a lot older than me and I was bowled over an older guy would show interest in me.”

Although the relationship lasted four months, Ms Adcock said Kelley continued to ring her from blocked numbers and send her messages from fake Facebook accounts for years afterwards.

She said she had been forced to change her number and on one occasion called the police to file a complaint.

Ms Adcock said Kelley last contacted her around six months ago via Facebook, sending her a topless photo of someone else he had found online, who he believed was her.

Kelley opened fire at the Texas church on Sunday with an automatic assault rifle, killing 26 people, before attempting to flee in his car.

He suffered three gunshot wounds after a neighbour fired at him, and was found dead in his vehicle with a self-inflicted shot to the head.

Information about Kelley’s past reveals a history of violent behaviour.

He began military service with the US Air Force in 2010 but was court-martialled for an assault on his wife and stepson in 2012 at which he was sentenced to a year’s confinement and demoted.

Kelley was detained at a mental health clinic in New Mexico but fled.

In a missing person report filed after his escape, Kelley was described as a “danger to himself and others”.