Cook’s Corner shooting - latest: Victims are named as ex-cop suspect John Snowling’s divorce details emerge

The Orange County District Attorney’s Office identified the gunman as retired Ventura Police sergeant John Snowling, 59

Cook's Corner mass shooting: At least 4 dead

At least four people have been killed and others are being treated for gunshot wounds after a mass shooting at a popular bikers’ bar in California’s Orange County.

The Orange County sheriff said those killed included the suspected gunman, identified by The Orange County Sheriff’s Department as John Snowling, 59.

Three people died and six others were injured before Snowling was killed by law enforcement. The fatal victims have been identified as John Leehey, 67, Tonya Clark, 49, and Glen Sprowl, 53.

The incident began with a domestic dispute between the gunman and his wife. Snowling, a retired law enforcement officer with the Ventura Police Department, opened fire on his wife Marie Snowling and her dining companion.

Sheriff Don Barnes said on Thursday that Snowling then continued shooting indiscriminately. A man who approached Snwoling as the gunman retrieved more weapons from his vehicle was fatally shot.

Ms Snowling had filed for divorce in December 2022, according to The Los Angeles Times. A neighbour of the couple told the outlet she had moved in with her ailing mother while Snowling was spending most of his time in Ohio, where he owned a property.

Key Points

• Gunman was retired police officer, Orange County authorities told
• One weapon recovered from the scene, police say
• At least four dead in shooting at historic California biker bar

[28 August 2023 04:00 · Andrea Blanco]

John Snowling’s wife filed for divorce in December 2022

According to the Los Angeles Times, Marie Snowling filed for divorce in December 2022.

A neighbour of the Snowlings told the Times that he believed the Snowlings’ marital issues stemmed from Ms Snowling wanting to go out more often, while her estranged husband wanted to stay at home.

“John was always kind of a standoffish kind of person,” James Goldsmith, 68, told the outlet. “He wasn’t the most personable guy, not that I can say that there was anything really negative. He wasn’t the type of neighbour that you’d get the warm fuzzies from.”

Mr Goldmisth said that Ms Snowling had moved out and now lived with her mother after she filed for divorce last year.

Snowling had recently bought a home in Ohio and was spending most of his time there, Mr Goldsmith said.

“I think it reached a point where it felt like life was passing her by because he didn’t want to do anything,” Mr Goldmisth told the Times.

“He would barely maintain the house. I think she wanted to have friends and live life and that’s why I think she made the move that she did. It’s sad that he couldn’t allow that and let her live her own life.”

[28 August 2023 07:00 · Andrea Blanco]

WATCH: Cook’s Corner shooting leaves 4, including shooter, dead

[28 August 2023 10:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Who are the victims?

The Orange County Sheriff’s Department has identified the fatal victims as John Leehey, 67, Tonya Clark, 49, and Glen Sprowl, 53.

“We stand in mourning alongside the family and friends of Tonya, John and Glen. We continue to extend our sincerest condolences to all who knew and loved them,” the department said in a statement on Friday.

“These three members of our community were tragically killed Wednesday in a shooting at Cook’s Corner in Trabuco Canyon. Please join us in wishing their loved ones comfort during this extremely difficult time.”

[28 August 2023 13:00 · Andrea Blanco]

A father describes rushing his 7-month-old to safety during shooting

Ryan Guidus was enjoying a spontaneous night out Wednesday with his 7-month-old daughter and mother-in-law at Cook’s Corner, a favorite family spot in Southern California that he’s frequented since his own childhood, when gunshots rang out.

First, he thought it was fireworks. But when screaming began and more shots followed, the bar’s popular weekly spaghetti night turned into every parent’s worst nightmare as a retired police sergeant opened fire.

“I just reached into the stroller and ejected my daughter out of that thing, ripped her out of there as fast as I could,” Guidus told The Associated Press on Friday. “It was all a blur, it happened so fast.”

Clutching baby Olive to his chest, Guidus sprinted from the bar’s patio to the back of the property where other patrons were hiding among the hillside trees along an embankment. When more shots erupted, the 36-year-old father handed Olive to a man next to him and jumped 10 feet (3.05 meters) down before grabbing her back.

Mountain bikers, finishing up a ride in the area, then helped him navigate the brush, one lifting a tree branch for him and his mother-in-law to crawl under, as they escaped to a nearby parking lot. He borrowed another mountain biker’s cellphone — he’d dropped his own in the stroller — to call his wife and his parents.

Only then did the baby start crying. It was nearing bedtime, and she was hungry for a bottle.

“I can’t stop hugging and kissing her,” Guidus said. “I obviously pray to God that she doesn’t remember this. I assume she won’t.”

AP