The shooter who opened fire inside Joel Osteen’s megachurch in Houston on Sunday has been identified as Genesse Moreno who allegedly carried out the shooting using an assault-style rifle with the word “Palestine” across it, police announced at a press conference on Monday.
Moreno, 36, has a lengthy criminal record and has gone by several male aliases.
Police said Moreno went into the Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, armed with a long rifle and dressed in a trench coat and backpack. She had her 7-year-old son with her.
After she began shooting, two off-duty officers returned fire and she was pronounced deceased at the scene.
The child got caught in the exchange of gunfire and was struck in the head. He is in critical condition.
A 57-year-old man was also shot in the leg. He has been released from the hospital, police said.
During the incident, police said that Moreno had also threatened that she had a bomb. But when police searched her vehicle and backpack, they found no explosives.
Lakewood Church is one of the largest Christian churches in the US with a capacity to seat about 16,000 people. Joel Osteen, its lead pastor, is one of the US’s most notable religious leaders.