Idaho restaurant shooting leaves multiple dead, gunman killed

Idaho restaurant shooting leaves multiple dead, gunman killed

Multiple people have been killed and others wounded after a shooting at an In-N-Out Burger restaurant in Twin Falls, Idaho, on Saturday afternoon, with police confirming that the suspected gunman was also dead.

Twin Falls Police Chief Matthew Hicks said officers believe the threat to the community has ended but cautioned that authorities were still working to identify the shooter and determine a motive.

“It was a very chaotic scene,” Hicks told reporters, adding that investigators were still notifying victims’ families and had not yet released an official death toll.

Witnesses describe gunfire and panic

The shooting unfolded near a busy shopping district packed with weekend customers.

Lane Koehn, who was stopped at a nearby traffic light, said he saw a man carrying what appeared to be an AR-style rifle emerge from the drive-thru area. Another man armed with a handgun began firing at the suspected shooter.

Koehn said he later watched an In-N-Out employee drag a wounded co-worker across the parking lot after she had been shot in the chest.

“She was pretty bad off,” he said. “I hope she made it.”

Police ordered people to evacuate while the shooting was still considered active.

Terrified customers flee the restaurant

Haley Dodaro and her mother were waiting in the drive-thru line when they saw employees and customers running from the restaurant.

“At first I thought there was a fire,” she said. “Then someone told us there was a shooter. People were crying and screaming. It was very scary.”

Inside the restaurant, Nayeli Rodriguez said she was waiting for food with her daughters when gunfire erupted from the kitchen area.

An employee shouted for customers to get down, and Rodriguez said an older man tried to shield her family before they fled outside.

“We were trying to get as far away as we could,” she said.

Video shows armed suspect near vehicle

Video recorded from across the street appeared to show a person dressed in black carrying a long rifle, opening the door of a white car and then accessing the vehicle’s trunk.

The person filming drove away quickly, fearing additional weapons might be retrieved from the vehicle.

Authorities have not yet confirmed the video’s connection to the shooting investigation.

Restaurant had opened just days earlier

The Twin Falls In-N-Out had opened on July 24 as part of the California-based chain’s expansion into Idaho, making the attack particularly shocking for local residents.

Police said multiple victims were transported to St. Luke’s Magic Valley Medical Center, which was working closely with emergency responders.

Twin Falls, a city of about 56,000 people roughly 130 miles southeast of Boise, saw a large law enforcement response as officers from several agencies secured the area and interviewed witnesses.

Investigators have urged anyone with information or video footage to contact police as they continue to piece together what happened and why the gunman opened fire in the crowded restaurant and parking lot.

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