Gunman at New Life Church Identified
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Updated: 8:23 AM Dec 12, 2007
Gunman at New Life Church Identified
Law enforcement have identified the shooter from Sunday's deadly rampage at New Life Church as 24 year old Matthew Murray, a Denver man who "hated Christians."
Posted: 3:00 PM Dec 10, 2007
Reporter: KKTV
Email Address: news@kktv11news.com
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Law enforcement officials have identified the shooter from Sunday's deadly rampage at New Life Church as 24 year old Matthew Murray, a Denver man who "hated Christians."

Five people including the gunman were killed, and five others wounded Sunday in two attacks. The first occurred at a youth missionary training center in the Denver suburb of Arvada. The other occurred at the New Life Church in Colorado Springs, where the gunman was shot and killed by a security guard.

Arvada Chief of Police Don Wick says Murray was the gunman in both attacks. He confirmed that forensic evidence found at New Life Church, and at the scene in Arvada match, linking the two deadly scenes.

Chief Wicks also said Murray once belonged to Youth with a Mission, which has campuses at both shooting scenes, but he was somehow removed from the group in 2002.

Murray lived in suburban Englewood. He was the son of a neurologist who is a prominent researcher on multiple sclerosis.

At this time authorities believe there are no indications of other suspects, but the investigation is still on-going.


Latest Comments

Posted by: Jack Location: Security on Dec 13, 2007 at 01:03 PM

To Matt, 'Aunonomus' and Marc, and anyone else who questions guns in a church, This is Colorado, we invented the 'make my day law' We had the Columbine incident, Coloradans carry guns, we make a point of it anymore, We shoot criminals here, we dont mess around. If this was some yuppie church in New Hampshire, im sure he would have killed a hundred people who would have sat idly by and let them selves get killed, We are survivors. New Life once got in trouble for training missionaries in handling these situations. Im surprised there was only one guard with a gun there. Christian churches have had armed guards since the begining. We just live in a society thats not used to it anymore. My deepest condolences to the families, I know what its like to lose someone like that, I wish there was something I could do for you. In the meantime, I will stay vigilant and rest assured, I will shoot anyone who threatens an innocent myself, even if its in a church.
Posted by: The Agnostic Location: Colorado Springs on Dec 11, 2007 at 03:04 PM

The KKTV report contains a quote that the shooter "hated Christians." Anyone know the source of the quote?
Posted by: Astonished on Dec 11, 2007 at 02:16 PM

Wow. I am dumbfounded by some of the comments on here. Some people can be very egoistic. ...Aside this, I was there. My son turned 6 that day. I cry when I realize that it was real. It was a real life situation! I want to think it was a dream, but in fact wasn't. I don’t understand the "real" motive as to why a young person would do this. I’m 24 as well and graduating college this Friday. I can’t imagine trying to take others lives for revenge.
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