Mormon Church Massacre Latest: Gunman Thomas Jacob Sanford's Mother Shared Chilling Message Days Before Shooting Killed Four People
Thomas Jacob Sanford allegedly stormed a Mormon church, killing four inside.
Sept. 29 2025, Published 2:30 p.m. ET
The mother of a man who opened fire inside a Michigan church before setting it ablaze shared a chilling message about the need for an unnamed person to "accept accountability," RadarOnline.com can report, just two days before the massacre.
At least four people were killed in the attack, but that number could climb as officials sift through the charred wreckage left behind.
Sanford then lit the church on fire with people trapped inside.
Thomas Jacob Sanford rammed his pick-up truck into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in neighboring Grand Blanc Sunday morning before opening fire on the congregants gathered inside.
The 40-year-old was shot and killed by responding officers as flames engulfed the chapel.
While a specific motive for the attack is not yet clear, questions are being raised about a cryptic Facebook post his mother, Brenda Walters-Sanford, shared with some harsh criticism for someone only identified as "You."
"People lack accountability, then say, 'You could’ve talked to me,'" she shared. "No, I couldn’t. You don’t listen. You deflect. You twist everything into an attack and then play the victim.
"Conversations with you aren’t healing—they’re exhausting, draining, and emotionally suffocating. Every time I try to speak, it feels like walking through a maze of blame where my words are used against me, my intentions questioned, and my emotions invalidated. I end up questioning myself, doubting my own perceptions, because nothing I say lands without being turned into some justification for your behavior."
Mom's Chilling Message
He was a decorated Marine who served in Iraq.
The post continued: "I’ve spent too long bending, softening, and framing my words to fit the narrative you want, hoping for connection, for understanding, for a simple acknowledgment of reality. But it never comes.
"Instead, there’s defensiveness, twisting, and manipulation, all while you act like the wronged party. And honestly, I can’t—and I won’t—invest my emotional energy in someone who consistently prioritizes winning over understanding, control over empathy, and excuses over responsibility.
"I don’t owe my peace to someone who shows up only to argue, to gaslight, to manipulate, and then claim victimhood when the consequences of their actions are pointed out.
"My time, my energy, my clarity, and my emotional well-being are precious, and I am done sacrificing them for someone who refuses to engage honestly. I will protect my calm, my boundaries, and my truth, even if it means walking away from the illusion of connection you so desperately cling to but never truly embody."
A Life of Service
His mother shared a cryptic message on Facebook just days before the attack.
Sanford was a former Marine who served in Iraq from June 2004 through June 2008, working as an automotive mechanic and vehicle recovery operator.
He was well-decorated, having earned several awards and medals, including the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the National Defense Service Medal.
A family friend told journalist Ty Steele that Sanford had been battling PTSD.
"It's hard to feel sad for someone who did something so terrible, and I still feel sad. I had heard through family events that he had had PTSD," the friend shared.
"He would make comments occasionally and it was something that was kind of talked about. It wasn't talked about in depth... so I don't know the depth of his issues."
The Church was Completely Destroyed
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A specific motive for the attack is not yet known.
The attack occurred about 10:25 a.m. Sunday morning, as hundreds of people were in the building in Grand Blanc Township, outside Flint.
Sanford allegedly smashed a pickup truck with two American flags raised in the bed and started shooting. According to officials, the attacker used gas to start the fire and also had explosive devices, but it wasn’t clear if he used them.
The episode left the church "completely destroyed" by the blaze, and there are fears the death toll will rise once it is safe to go inside the burnt structure, where parishioners may have been trapped.
The FBI is leading the investigation and consider it an "act of targeted violence."
