Firefighters had dispute before fatal fire station shooting in California

The suspected gunman in the Santa Clarita, Calif., fire station shooting on Tuesday was an off-duty firefighter who had a dispute with the colleague he fatally shot, authorities said on Wednesday.

Officials confirmed that the suspect, Jonathan Tatone, had died by suicide Tuesday at his home, which he set on fire, The Associated Press reports.

On Tuesday afternoon, it was reported that at least one person had been fatally shot at the Los Angeles County Fire Department Station 81 in the Santa Clarita Valley. It was later reported that a fire captain had also been wounded by the gunman. The captain is in critical but stable condition.

The fireman who died was later identified as Tory Carlon, a 44-year-old fire specialist. He had worked for the Los Angeles County Fire Department for more than 20 years. He had three daughters.

Los Angeles County sheriff’s Lt. Brandon Dean, who is overseeing the investigation, told the AP that it appeared as though the two firemen had “some workplace beef.”

“It sounds like they didn’t like each other,” he added.

It is unclear how long the two firemen had worked together. Dean said investigators will be looking through personnel files to see if any complaints or disciplinary actions had been made prior to the shooting.

Tatone has not been officially identified as the shooter. Public payroll records indicate that he had been firefighter since at least 2012.

Tatone is believed to have been the owner of the home that was set ablaze on Tuesday and where his body was found, the AP reports. A handgun was seized at the home that investigators believe is linked to the fire station shooting.

Fire Chief Daryl Osby said of the shooting, “I never thought that when our firefighters face danger, that they would face danger in one of our community fire stations.”