One of the survivors of the massacre which left nine people dead at a historic Black church in South Carolina on Wednesday night said, the gunman reloaded five times and explained his motive for the killings, rawstory.com reports.
A white man, believed to be in his early 20s entered the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church downtown Charleston, killing Pastor Rev. Clementa Pinckney, also a state senator and 8 other parishioners.
The survivor told reporters the gunman, who sat next to Pinckney throughout the service, reloaded five times after he began shooting and ignored pleas to spear their lives, according to rawstory.com.
“You rape our women and you’re taking over our country — and you have to go,” the terrorist said, according to a survivor.
Police released surveillance footage of the gunman, described as 5 feet 9 inches tall, with light brown hair in a bowl cut. An image of the vehicle with a distinctive license plate, used by the gunman has also been released.
The gunman remains on the loose, but Charleston authorities believe he is still in the area.
The massacre of the worshippers is being described as a “hate crime” and the Department of Justice has launched an investigation.
