California Shooter Kevin Neal's First Victim Was His Wife, Body Found

Officials have said that the wife of the gunman who went on a shooting spree in Northern California was found hidden under a floor in their home on Wednesday. This brings the death toll to five people, according to the authorities.

Phil Johnston, Tehama County Assistant Sheriff spoke to the New York Post and said: "[We believe he] cut a hole in the floor and literally put her body in the hole."

Johnston said, "We were looking for his wife, couldn't find her yesterday. We located her dead body concealed under the floor of the residence," NBC News reported. He added that the investigations reveal that his wife was killed on Monday, making her his first victim before he went on a shooting rampage in Northern California.

The shooter, who was identified as Kevin Janson Neal went on a shooting rampage on Tuesday through the Rancho Tehama County in Northern California. During the shooting in which he was "randomly picking targets," Neal killed four people and injured at least 10 others, including two children.

According to officials, the situation was brought under control only after the police managed to ram the gunman’s vehicle after he started shooting at the police vehicle. The suspect was then killed as a result of an exchange of gunfire. "The suspect was shooting at the police vehicle, back at them, the officer rammed the vehicle, forced it off the road, an exchange of gunfire — resulting in the shooter’s death," Tehama County Assistant Sheriff said.

The authorities described the shooting as a 45-minute rampage through Rancho Tehama which is a quiet reserve about 120 miles northwest of downtown Sacramento. Reports state that Neal had wielded a semi-automatic rifle and two handguns during the bloodbath which were discovered by the police and were then believed to be used by the gunman.

According to his mother, Annie, Neal was increasingly frustrated with his neighbor who he presumed was running a meth lab with fumes that were harming his nine dogs. His mother also revealed how Neal called her a day before the attack and apologized saying that he was at his wits’ end. "Mom, it’s all over now. I have done everything I could do and I am fighting against everyone who lives in this area," Annie quoted Neal as saying.

In addition to his neighbors, Neal also terrorized a local elementary school at one point during his rampage. Witnesses told law enforcement officials he crashed through the school’s gates with his truck and opened fire, spraying walls and classrooms with bullets.

Neal had already been in trouble with the law before his shooting rampage as he was out on bail on charges of stabbing a neighbor, New York Post reported.

Speaking about his motive, Johnston said, "I think the motive of getting even with his neighbors and when it went that far — he just went on a rampage".

However, authorities are still investigating other possible motives as police mentioned that his other targets were picked at random, the Los Angeles Times reported.