Shooter entered Texas megachurch with young son and used AR-style rifle in the attack, police say

HOUSTON —  The person who opened fire at a Texas megachurch on Sunday before being killed by security officers had a history of mental illness and used an AR-style rifle in the attack that also critically injured their 7-year-old son, authorities said Monday.

Genesse Ivonne Moreno was identified by Houston Police Commander Chris Hassig as the shooter at Lakewood Church during an afternoon news conference.

Hassig noted that Moreno, 36, sometimes used both male and female aliases, but investigators determined through interviews and past police reports that Moreno identified as female.

Hassig and others said Moreno had a history of mental illness, including being placed under emergency detention in 2016, but they provided no additional details.

Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said it remained too soon to identify a motive for the shooting, but officials said they were looking into a dispute involving Moreno and the family of Moreno’s ex-husband, adding that investigators also found antisemitic writings by the shooter.

Hassig also said the rifle had a “Palestine” sticker on the buttstock. He described the shooter as a “lone wolf” who was not acting as any part of a larger group.

Police on Monday searched Moreno’s residence in Conroe, about 40 miles north of Houston.

According to investigators, Moreno and the boy entered the church building at 1:55 p.m. after Moreno pointed a gun at an unarmed security guard and, once inside, began firing.

The guards inside the building — off-duty Houston police officer Christopher Moreno (no relation to Genesse Moreno, the Houston Chronicle reported) and Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission Agent Adrian Herrera — returned fire and killed Genesse Moreno.

The gunfire was in a church hallway and none spilled into the main sanctuary, Hassig said, describing the confrontation as a “gun battle” that lasted several minutes.

“They held their ground in the face of rifle fire at point-blank range,” Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission Chairman Kevin Lilly said. “They were a wall that existed between worshipers and terror.”

Investigators do not yet know if Moreno’s son was accidentally shot by one of the guards, Finner said. The boy remained in critical condition with a gunshot wound to the head, authorities said.

Police said a 57-year-old man who was shot in the hip during the shooting has been discharged from the hospital.

Finner said the shooter told officers after being shot there was a bomb, but a search found no explosives.

Lakewood, run by celebrity pastor Joel Osteen, is regularly attended by 45,000 people weekly, making it the third-largest megachurch in the U.S., according to the Hartford Institute for Religion Research.

Osteen said the violence could have been worse if the shooting had happened during the earlier and larger late Sunday morning service. It was unclear where Osteen was during the shooting.

Texas does not require a license to carry a handgun or a rifle, although state law sets a handgun minimum age requirement at 21. Texas has also been an “open carry” state, which allows people to carry their weapons in plain view, since 2015, and eliminated the handgun license requirement in 2021.

After a gunman in 2017 killed 26 people at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas lawmakers in 2019 clarified state law to allow the carrying of weapons in houses of worship, unless specifically banned by a congregation with written and oral notice.

At the megachurch on Sunday, Alan Guity was resting inside the church’s sanctuary when he heard gunshots, he said. His mother was working as an usher.

“Boom, boom, boom, boom. And I yelled, ‘Mom!’ ” he said.

Guity, 35, said he ran to his mother and they both lay flat on the floor as the gunfire continued. They prayed and stayed on the floor for about five minutes until someone told them it was safe to leave the building. As he was led outside, Guity could see people crying and looking for loved ones.

Osteen, 60, took the helm of Lakewood Church after John Osteen, his father and the church’s founding pastor, died in 1999. The church has grown dramatically under his leadership.

Osteen is an author and leading promoter of what is known as the prosperity gospel, a belief that God wants his followers to be wealthy and healthy. His televised services reach about 100 countries and renovating his church’s arena cost nearly $100 million.