An English bishop called on Catholics of his diocese to pray for the victims of a shooting spree in which a 3-year-old girl and four others were murdered.
Bishop Mark O’Toole of Plymouth, a diocese that covers the southwest corner of England, described the August 12 massacre as “terrible.”
“It is with a deep sense of shock and sadness that we heard the news of the terrible shooting in our beloved city,” Bishop O’Toole said in an August 13 statement. “I offer my support and prayers for all those who were killed, and for their loved ones at this tragic time.”
“Let us pray in our churches this weekend for all those affected and for the people of Plymouth,” the bishop added.
The gunman has been identified as Jake Davison, 22, a body builder and apprentice crane driver.
In a shooting spree lasting just six minutes, he kicked open the door of a house in Plymouth and used a rifle to murder one of the occupants, said to be related to him, and to injure two others.
He then shot dead the child and her male relative and injured a man and a woman who were nearby, before killing a man walking through a park and a woman who was standing outside a hair salon. He ended his spree by using the rifle to take his own life.
