Employee injured in South Carolina workplace shooting dies

One of two people struck in a workplace shooting in South Carolina last week has died, the coroner in Anderson County confirmed.

The deceased was identified as Iain Samuel Peare, 24, of Belton, the county coroner’s office said in a statement. The suspect, said to be a former employee, died when he shot himself at the location, the coroner said earlier.

Anderson County Sheriff Chad McBride said the other victim suffered only a graze wound. NBC affiliate WYFF of Greenville reported that the weapon was an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle.

Authorities told the station that the shooter and the company had parted ways just a day or two before the attack.

The shooting happened at 10:30 p.m. Tuesday at an industrial piping plant in unincorporated Anderson County operated by a German firm called Fränkische, authorities said.

The shooter opened fire on employees as many fled to a nearby restaurant called Tipsy Tavern, McBride said at a news conference the night of the violence.

Authorities said about 30 workers were at the location as gunfire erupted. McBride said that by the time deputies arrived, the shooter had already turned a gun on himself.

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Peare was struck in the head and put on life support at a nearby AnMed Health facility, Coroner Greg Shore said by email. He was pronounced dead at 3:26 p.m. Sunday, the coroner’s office said.

Frauke Barnofsky, a spokesman for Fränkische, said in a statement provided to WYFF, “We are deeply shocked and our thoughts are with the victims and their families.”

The company is providing assistance to employees affected by the attack, and it is cooperating with authorities, Barnofsky said.

The shooting remained under investigation by the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office and coroner’s officials.

The coroner’s office identified the gunman as Bruce Vandermosten Jr. 

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