KRON
The shooting suspect has been identified as Sam Cassidy, a VTA employee. Early news reports are that he made $160k per year in some kind of managerial role.
His neighbor across the street described him as “a quiet guy who kept to himself and never talking to anyone.” “No family, no visitors.”
The gunman who killed 8 people at a San Jose VTA railyard Wednesday has been identified as 57-year-old Sam Cassidy, a VTA employee.
The district attorney said Cassidy killed himself after the shooting.
The shooting took place around 6:30 a.m. at a light rail facility in San Jose next door to the sheriff’s department and across a freeway from the airport. The facility is a transit control center that stores trains and have a maintenance yard.
Sheriff’s spokesman Deputy Russell Davis said he did not know the type of weapon used or whether the gunfire happened indoors or outdoors. He said the victims include Valley Transportation Authority employees.
Officials were also investigating a house fire that broke out shortly before the shooting, Davis said. Public records show Cassidy owned the two-story home where firefighters responded Wednesday morning.
Cassidy had worked for the VTA since at least 2012, according to the public payroll and pension database known as Transparent California. His position from 2012 to 2014 was listed as a mechanic. After that, he was a substation maintainer, the records said.
KRON4 spoke to Cassidy’s former girlfriend’s attorney, Robert Cummings, who said the two met on Match in 2009, and two months later he proposed. The girlfriend declined as she felt that was too fast.
Cummings said the girlfriend told him about Cassidy’s mood swings and was bipolar.
Doug Suh, who lives across the street from Cassidy, told local news outlets that Cassidy was “lonely” and “strange” and that he never saw anyone visit.
“I’d say hello, and he’d just look at me without saying anything,” Suh said. Once, Cassidy yelled at him to stay away as he was backing up his car. “After that, I never talked to him again.”
KRON4’s Sara Stinson reports that the house is about 10 minutes drive from the rail yard.
