Two people were killed and others seriously wounded in a stabbing at a California church on Sunday night.
Officers found multiple stabbing victims at the Grace Baptist Church, located at 484 E San Fernando Street in San Jose, on Sunday evening, according to a tweet from the San Jose Police Department (SJPD) shortly before 9 p.m.
According to ABC7, the stabbing was first reported at 7:53 p.m. Video shared by news outlets showed several ambulances and police cars at the scene.
It wasn’t immediately clear how many people were injured in the attack, but police said on Twitter that some of the stabbing victims had life-threatening injuries.
Police later confirmed that two of the victims had died. “Two victims have succumbed to their injuries and have been pronounced deceased,” they wrote in a tweet.
No services were taking place at the church at the time of the incident, police said on Twitter. “Unhoused individuals were brought into the church to get them out of the cold,” the department said.
Shortly before 10 p.m., San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo tweeted that a suspect had been arrested, but he deleted the post after police said that information was not confirmed.
“Our hearts go out to the families of the two community members who have succumbed to stabbing wounds in the attack at Grace Baptist Church downtown tonight. SJPD has arrested the suspect,” he said in the tweet.
After deleting the post, Liccardo wrote in another tweet: “I’ve just deleted a tweet that made reference to the ongoing investigation into the stabbings at Grace Baptist Church this evening.
“A statement will be coming out shortly from SJPD regarding the status of the investigation and arrest.”
Police said an update on the incident will be provided Monday “when more facts are known.”
They urged people to avoid the area around the church, which is near the San Jose State University campus. “This is a very active scene. Thank you for your patience,” police tweeted.
In another post, the department thanked officers who “rendered aid to victims in the middle of a chaotic scene and undoubtedly saved lives.”
The two deaths raised the number of homicides in San Jose this year to 41, police also noted.