At least two gunmen and an accomplice are believed to have been involved in a gang-related shooting at a high school campus in East Oakland, California, this week in which two students and four staff members were wounded, two critically, police said.
The gunmen fired at least 30 rounds during Wednesday's shooting at Rudsdale Newcomer High School, on the King Estates campus in the 8200 block of Fontaine Street, Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong told reporters during a news conference Thursday. At least one other person was involved in the shooting, but there may be others, he said.
No arrests have been made.
"The individuals who are responsible for this are still out in the community and are armed and dangerous," Armstrong said.
The two shooters approached from the front of the school, identified the person they were allegedly targeting and opened fire before fleeing the scene, he said. The attack is suspected to be gang-related and police believe the shooters used handguns with extended magazines, based on the rounds that were found at the school.
Police have not determined how the gunmen got inside the school, the chief said. It is also unclear if the doors were unlocked or if they were already open, he said.
Nonetheless, they didn't appear to make it that "deep" into the school, he said.
"It does not look like they breached the school or used tools to breach the school," he said.
Police haven't released any descriptions or details about the suspect's identities. Armstrong said investigators are poring over surveillance video and are working to identify the shooters.
Two students, a security guard, a school counselor and two other staff members were injured in the shooting, he said. The two victims who sustained the most serious injuries remain in critical condition, he said. A third individual is stable; the other three have been released from the hospital.
Armstrong declined to specify whether the two in critical condition were students or staff members, citing safety reasons.
Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, who also attended the news conference, addressed the gun violence in the city.
"Every big-city mayor is tired of having press conferences like the one we are having right now," she said. "We are tired of recognizing that despite the heroic efforts at local levels, that we cannot solve this epidemic of gun violence without federal action."
The campus houses four schools, ranging from middle to high schools, including the Bay Area Technology School, a public charter school for grades 6-12, and the Sojourner Truth Independent Study school, which operates an online learning program for K-12 students.
In a letter to families in the district Thursday morning, Oakland Unified Acting Superintendent Sondra Aguilera confirmed that Rudsdale, Sojourner Truth and BayTech are closed Thursday. Behavioral health staff will be available to provide psychological and emotional support to students and staff once they return to school.
"Our thoughts are with the people who were injured and their families, and we are hoping for quick recoveries for all of them," Aguilera said in the letter. "We know how traumatizing this incident is for students, families, and staff alike."
No students from Sojourner Truth were on campus Wednesday because of its virtual setup, said district spokesperson John Sasaki, who didn't specify whether staff members were at the building.
The Oakland Academy of Knowledge, an elementary school, is also near the campus, but Sasaki said the shooting didn't have any connection to the school.
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(Los Angeles Times staff writers Grace Toohey and Christian Martinez contributed to this report.)
