Three killed in new American shooting

A man apparently engaged in a feud with a Houston business shot three people to death yesterday before he turned the gun on himself.

A man apparently engaged in a feud with a Houston business shot three people to death yesterday before he turned the gun on himself.

The shooting took place at Amko Trading, a wholesale clothing and perfume business in south-west Houston. A police spokeswoman said two women and a man were found dead inside the store.

An employee who was inside the store when the shots were fired said the owner, his wife and their daughter were killed. "When I heard the shots I got out and ran. I was very scared," said Ruben Zuniga, an employee aged 29. He said eight customers were inside, but no one else was hurt.

The suspected gunman, who had held police at bay for an hour, died at Ben Taub General Hospital of a gunshot wound to the head, police said. The spokesman said the suspect had been in a "lingering feud" with the business.

The store is in an area of south-west Houston filled with office parks commonly occupied by discount and wholesale stores.

The shooting is the latest in a series of mass killings at commercial premises in the United States. Just after Christmas, Michael McDermott killed seven people at the internet consulting firm where he worked in a Boston suburb. He had been annoyed because his employer had docked his pay to settle his tax bill.