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Sacramento City College reopens following shooter's capture

The Sacramento Bee reports that the 34-year-old man charged in the slayings has used at least two identities and has been deported from the United States twice in the past.

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Renée C. Byer/The Sacramento Bee via AP
A police officer stands guard as Sacramento City College is on lockdown while police search the area after a shooting, Thursday, Sept. 3, 2015, in Sacramento, Calif. The shooting occurred in a parking lot near the baseball field on the college campus.
  • By Associated Press

| Sacramento, Calif.​

A Sacramento community college reopened Friday as officers searched for a gunman who fatally shot one man and wounded two others in a parking lot at the edge of campus, officials said.

Sacramento police Sgt. Doug Morse says the gunman ran from the scene after the shooting near a campus baseball field on Thursday afternoon, and was not found in a sweep of the campus and surrounding neighborhood. His name has not been released.

Authorities said one victim was pronounced dead at the scene, another was hospitalized and is expected to survive; the third was grazed by a bullet.

Their names and ages have not been released. Two of the victims were students at the school, but it wasn't immediately clear which two.

The shooting began as an argument between two groups of men, said Dustin Poore of Los Rios police, which patrols Sacramento City College.

A physical fight escalated when a knife and gun were pulled out, said police in a news release late Thursday. Police said the shooting victim was believed to be involved in the fight.

Authorities have not ruled out gang involvement.

It was also unclear whether the gunman has any ties to the school, and police have not given a motive.

The suspect, wearing a white T-shirt and cargo shorts, ran from the scene and remained at large Friday.

The campus was locked down for about two hours Thursday before police officers had cleared all the buildings and allowed students and staff to leave, Morse said.

Police descended on the campus shortly after the gunfire broke out, and students were told to stay in their classrooms and lock the door.

"My stomach dropped," student Lars Beesom told KCRA-TV. "It was definitely really, really scary, but we all stayed calm.

Beesom added, "It's school. It's supposed to be a good environment, and you don't want to be scared here."

Jackie Flores, 50, who lives across the street from the parking lot, said she heard four or five shots fired.

"It all happened so fast," she told the Sacramento Bee.

Classes were in session at the two-year college in central Sacramento with a student body of about 25,000. The fall semester began Aug. 22.

The corner of campus where the shooting occurred is surrounded by strip malls with chain restaurants on one side and a golf course on the other.

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