Army Sergeant taken into custody after he shoots five at US military base (Ld)

Georgia (United States), Aug 7 (IANS) An active-duty Army sergeant was taken into custody after allegedly opening fire at his workplace on the sprawling Fort Stewart military base in Georgia, injuring five fellow soldiers, according to local media reports.

Authorities identified the suspect as 28-year-old Sgt. Quornelius Samentrio Radford, who was subdued by nearby soldiers moments after the shooting began.

Brig. Gen. John Lubas, commanding general of the 3rd Infantry Division, on Wednesday (local time) said Radford used a personal handgun during the attack and that all five wounded soldiers are currently in stable condition, reports CNN.

"Soldiers in the area who witnessed the shooting immediately and without hesitation tackled the soldier and subdued him. That allowed law enforcement to then take him into custody," Lubas said during a news conference.

Though the motive remains unclear, a law enforcement official briefed on the incident confirmed that Radford had a disagreement with one of the victims on Tuesday.

He allegedly followed that individual to a maintenance area and shot him in the chest before turning the gun on four others. The nature of the disagreement has not yet been disclosed.

This latest incident is one of at least 262 mass shootings recorded in the United States this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. It also follows deadly shootings in a Midtown Manhattan skyscraper and a neighbourhood bar in rural Montana just days earlier, according to the CNN report.

The quick intervention by fellow soldiers likely prevented further bloodshed. "Other soldiers prevented further casualties by tackling Radford before police arrested him," Lubas added.

Further investigations are underway.

More details are awaited.

--IANS

sd/