CHARLESTON, S.C., June 18 (Reuters) - Nine people were killed when a white gunman entered a historic African-American church in Charleston, South Carolina, and opened fire, the city's police chief said on Thursday.

One other person was wounded and taken to a hospital, Chief Gregory Mullen told reporters about four hours after the shooting on Wednesday evening.

Describing the shooting as a hate crime, Mullen said: "It is unfathomable that somebody in today's society would walk into a church when people are having a prayer meeting and take their lives."

Worshippers embrace following a group prayer across the street from the scene of a shooting in Charleston, S.C., June 17, 2015,

He also said that an all-clear had been sounded after an earlier bomb threat in the area of the church.

(Reporting By Harriet McLeod in Charleston; Writing by Frank McGurty; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)

This is a developing news story. Reuters' previous version follows:

CHARLESTON, S.C., June 17 (Reuters) - A gunman opened fire on Wednesday evening at a historic African-American church in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, and was still at large, a U.S. police official said, but there were no immediate confirmed reports of casualties.

The suspect was described as a 21-year-old white man wearing a sweatshirt, jeans and boots, Charleston police said in a message on Twitter.

Police stand outside the Emanuel AME Church following a shooting Wednesday, June 17, 2015, in Charleston, S.C.
© David Goldman Police stand outside the Emanuel AME Church following a shooting Wednesday, June 17, 2015, in Charleston, S.C.
Charleston Police Department spokesman Charles Francis said the shooting occurred at the Emanuel AME Church around 9 p.m. local time (0100 GMT). He had no information on victims.

A bomb threat was later reported near the scene of the church shooting, Charleston County Sheriff's Office spokesman Eric Watson said. People who were gathered in the area were told by police to move back.

A police chaplain was present at the scene of the shooting, and a helicopter with a searchlight hovered overhead as officers combed through the area.

A group of several men stood in a circle in front of a hotel near the church. "We pray for the families, they've got a long road ahead of them," Reverend James Johnson, a local civil rights activist, said during the impromptu prayer service.

Police took a man with a backpack and a camera into custody, but later said they were still searching for a suspect in the shooting, television station WCIV reported.

Local broadcaster WCSC reported the FBI was on the scene. The FBI could not be reached immediately for comment.

The website for the church said it has one of the largest and oldest black congregations in the region. It was built in 1891 and is considered a historically significant building, according to the National Park Service.

The church is led by the Reverend Clementa Pinckney, who also serves in the state senate, according to the church's website.

(Additional reporting by Randall Hill in Charleston, S.C., Alex Dobuzinskis in Los Angeles and Curtis Skinner in San Francisco,; Editing by Ken Wills and Paul Tait)

source: http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/gunman-kills-nine-people-in-south-carolina-church-shooting-police-say/ar-AAbKtKj?ocid=BDT3DHP

mad racist

Sad news...may their souls rest in peace.

So many mentally deficient creatures in America... my condolences to the bereaved.

tunde233:
CHARLESTON, S.C., June 18 (Reuters) - Nine people were killed when a white gunman entered a historic African-American church in Charleston, South Carolina, and opened fire, the city's police chief said on Thursday.

One other person was wounded and taken to a hospital, Chief Gregory Mullen told reporters about four hours after the shooting on Wednesday evening.

Describing the shooting as a hate crime, Mullen said: "It is unfathomable that somebody in today's society would walk into a church when people are having a prayer meeting and take their lives."

Worshippers embrace following a group prayer across the street from the scene of a shooting in Charleston, S.C., June 17, 2015,

He also said that an all-clear had been sounded after an earlier bomb threat in the area of the church.

(Reporting By Harriet McLeod in Charleston; Writing by Frank McGurty; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)

This is a developing news story. Reuters' previous version follows:

CHARLESTON, S.C., June 17 (Reuters) - A gunman opened fire on Wednesday evening at a historic African-American church in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, and was still at large, a U.S. police official said, but there were no immediate confirmed reports of casualties.

The suspect was described as a 21-year-old white man wearing a sweatshirt, jeans and boots, Charleston police said in a message on Twitter.

Police stand outside the Emanuel AME Church following a shooting Wednesday, June 17, 2015, in Charleston, S.C.
© David Goldman Police stand outside the Emanuel AME Church following a shooting Wednesday, June 17, 2015, in Charleston, S.C.
Charleston Police Department spokesman Charles Francis said the shooting occurred at the Emanuel AME Church around 9 p.m. local time (0100 GMT). He had no information on victims.

A bomb threat was later reported near the scene of the church shooting, Charleston County Sheriff's Office spokesman Eric Watson said. People who were gathered in the area were told by police to move back.

A police chaplain was present at the scene of the shooting, and a helicopter with a searchlight hovered overhead as officers combed through the area.

A group of several men stood in a circle in front of a hotel near the church. "We pray for the families, they've got a long road ahead of them," Reverend James Johnson, a local civil rights activist, said during the impromptu prayer service.

Police took a man with a backpack and a camera into custody, but later said they were still searching for a suspect in the shooting, television station WCIV reported.

Local broadcaster WCSC reported the FBI was on the scene. The FBI could not be reached immediately for comment.

The website for the church said it has one of the largest and oldest black congregations in the region. It was built in 1891 and is considered a historically significant building, according to the National Park Service.

The church is led by the Reverend Clementa Pinckney, who also serves in the state senate, according to the church's website.

(Additional reporting by Randall Hill in Charleston, S.C., Alex Dobuzinskis in Los Angeles and Curtis Skinner in San Francisco,; Editing by Ken Wills and Paul Tait)

source: http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/gunman-kills-nine-people-in-south-carolina-church-shooting-police-say/ar-AAbKtKj?ocid=BDT3DHP

rapture will soon take place...