Devin Patrick Kelley, the 26-year-old former soldier, drove to the quiet rural community on Sunday morning and opened fire on the congregation as they attended the Sunday service.
Dressed in black tactical gear and wearing a ballistic vest, the callous killer murdered 26 innocent people and was only stopped when a brave neighbour confronted him.
The neighbour, named locally as Stephen Willeford, 55, reportedly killed Kelley after a high-speed car chase.
As further details about the shooting emerge it has been confirmed that 26-year-old Kelley, a married father, had previously worked as a Bible study teacher.
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Devin Patrick Kelley, 26, has been described as “weird” and an “atheist” by former schoolmates
His Facebook page, which has since been deleted, reveals an obsession with firearms and he recently posted a picture of an AR-15 style gun on Facebook alongside the caption: “She’s a bad b***h.”
The gunman’s mother-in-law, Michelle Shields, appears to have been a parishioner at the church but it remains unclear whether she was inside when the shooting took place.
CBS reported Kelley worked in logistics and supply in the US Air Force between 2010-14 before being court-martialled for two counts of assaulting his spouse and child, and received 12 months ‘confinement’ and a dishonourable discharge.
US law bans service people dishonourably discharged from duty from owning a gun, meaning the weapon used by the mass shooter was probably attained illegally.
According to a LinkedIn profile in Kelley’s name, which no longer exists on the website, he also worked teaching Bible school children aged 4-6 in June 2013 to help “their minds grow and prosper”.
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The Sutherland Springs community has been devastated by the shooting
Kelley, who lived in the San Antonio suburb of New Braunfels, has been described by former schoolmates as “weird”.
Patrick Boyce, who attended New Braunfels High School with Kelley, told DailyMail.com: “He had a kid or two, fairly normal, but kinda quiet and lately seemed depressed.
“He was the first atheist I met. He went Air Force after high school, got discharged but I don’t know why.
“I was just shocked [to hear the news]. Still haven’t quite processed how he could have done that.”
Nina Rose Nava, who went to school with the gunman, wrote on Facebook: “In complete shock! I legit just deleted him off my fb cause I couldn’t stand his post.
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A LinkedIn page believed to be that of killer Devlin Patrick Kelley
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The face of a killer: 26-year-old Devlin Patrick Kelley
“He was always talking about how people who believe in God we’re stupid and trying to preach his atheism.”
Nava added: “I went to school with him. We had a few conversations here and there. It’s not something I expected from him.
“He was an outcast but not a loner. He was popular among other outcast. I haven’t spoke to him since high school.”
The Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, confirmed at least 26 people have been killed in what he has described as “the largest mass shooting in the state’s history”.
President Donald Trump, speaking from Japan where he is currently on tour, called the shooting “an act from evil”.
He said: “We cannot out into words the pain and grief we all feel.
“But in dark times such as these Americans do what they do best, they pull together.”
He went on to blame the shooting on a “mental health problem”, rather than “a guns situation”.
He told reporters: “We have a lot of mental health problems in our country, as do other countries. But this isn’t a guns situation.
”Fortunately somebody else had a gun that was shooting in the opposite direction.
“This is a mental health problem at the highest level. It’s a very, very sad event.”