San Bernardino gunman was pastor, Navy vet with record of violence
RT.com
11 Apr, 2017
The “deeply religious man” who entered a California school to kill his estranged wife was in a seemingly happy relationship. In reality, Cedric Anderson was “paranoid and possessive” and in a deteriorating marriage, family members said.
On Monday, Anderson, 53, received clearance from the front office of North Park Elementary School in San Bernardino, California, to access to a classroom to give something to his wife Karen Elaine Smith, 53, who taught special-education children.
Once inside, Anderson quickly opened fire, police said, killing Smith and Jonathan Martinez, an 8-year-old boy standing near her.
A 9-year-old boy was also shot but is in stable condition, according to reports. Anderson then reloaded and turned his .357 revolver on himself.
Anderson and Smith were married in late January after four years of friendship, Smith’s mother, Irma Sykes, told the Los Angeles Times.
Anderson often posted on social media about their marriage and his faith, referring to Smith as his “angel.” His Facebook page, which is no longer available, featured several posts and videos about is love for Smith all the way up to March 15, the date of his last public post, according to reports.
After moving in with Smith, Anderson’s demeanor changed for the worse, Sykes said, and Smith was considering divorce.
“She thought she had a wonderful husband, but she found out he was not wonderful at all,” Sykes said. “He had other motives. She left him and that’s where the trouble began.”
Smith, a devoted Christian who had four children from a previous marriage, had been a teacher for about ten years and was motivated to help children with autism and learning disabilities, the Times reported.
One of Smith’s adult children, Joshua, said his mother was a “genuinely loving and caring person.”
Anderson, however, was “different” at first and later became “paranoid and possessive,” Joshua Smith told the Washington Post. This situation led his mother to leave Anderson shortly after their wedding, he said.
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