BREAKING: Gunman opens fire in a Florida yoga studio, killing 2

November 3, 2018  14H:06  GMT/UTC/ZULU TIME

by Rochelle van Amber and Biodun Iginla, BBC News and Reuters, Tallahassee, Florida

A gunman opened fire in a Florida yoga studio on Friday, shooting six people and killing two of them before class members fought back and the attacker killed himself, police and authorities said.

Police received a call at 5.37 p.m. of multiple victims at the Hot Yoga studio at an upscale shopping center in Florida’s capital, Tallahassee, Police Chief Michael DeLeo told reporters.

The shooter pistol-whipped one man in the yoga class who rushed him after he opened fire, the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper reported.

“There were indications that several people not only fought back but tried to save other people,” DeLeo told reporters, confirming that one man was pistol-whipped.

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Three of the wounded were in critical condition, said Danielle Buchanan, spokeswoman for Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare.

The gunman appeared to have acted alone and there was no immediate threat to the Tallahassee community, DeLeo said.

Police have tentatively identified the shooter and are looking for any links between him and the victims, he added.

“All evidence points to a single actor who has stayed on scene and is deceased at this time so there is no additional threat to the public,” DeLeo said. City Commissioner Scott Maddox was among officials who went to the incident.

“In my public service career, I have had to be on some bad scenes. This is the worst. Please pray,” Maddox posted on Facebook.

Alex Redding, a patron at a bar downstairs from the studio, said people came inside seeking assistance, saying a man had been acting strangely inside the yoga studio and then began shooting during the class, the Tallahassee Democrat reported.

Other victims, barefoot from their yoga class, came into the bar in clear shock and barely able to speak anything but the word “shooter,” the newspaper reported.

Mayor Andrew Gillum, the Democratic nominee for state governor, halted campaigning to return to the city.

“No act of gun violence is acceptable,” Gillum tweeted.

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Tallahassee’s murder rate has been an issue in the governor’s race, with Gillum’s opponent Republican former U.S. Representative Ron DeSantis accusing him of being weak on crime.

Megan Nixon said she was eating at a restaurant underneath the studio when she heard shooting and people running upstairs.

“The gun shot six or seven times. I saw five different ambulances picking people up,” she told the Tallahassee Democrat. “It’s scary it’s so close to home.”

Racist robocalls target black candidate for Florida governor

September 2, 2018  13H:23  GMT/UTC/ZULU TIME

by Alyssa Mann and Biodun Iginla, BBC News and Reuters, Tallahassee

Racist robocalls to voters from a white nationalist group targeting Andrew Gillum, the Democratic party’s African-American candidate for Florida governor, were condemned on Saturday by both major campaigns contesting November’s election.

Aug 28, 2018; Tallahassee, FL, USA; Democratic gubernatorial nominee Andrew Gillum celebrates his victory with supporters during his election watch party at Hotel Duval. Mandatory Credit: Joe Rondone/Tallahassee Democrat via USA TODAY NETWORK

According to the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper, which first reported on the robocalls, they include jungle noises in the background and a man who pretends to be Gillum, the 39-year-old mayor of Tallahassee, using a minstrel performer’s exaggerated accent and speaking about mud huts.

It was not clear how many Florida voters received the robocalls on Friday. While denouncing the calls as racist, Gillum spokesman’s Geoff Burgan said they should not be given undeserved attention.

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“This is reprehensible — and could only have come from someone with intentions to fuel hatred and seek publicity,” Burgan said in statement.

After scoring a surprise victory in this week’s Democratic primary, Gillum could become Florida’s first black governor if he beats Republican party’s candidate Ron DeSantis in November.

A spokesman for DeSantis, Stephen Lawson, also condemned the robocalls as “absolutely appalling and disgusting.”

“Hopefully whoever is behind this has to answer for this despicable action,” Lawson said in a statement.

DeSantis, a U.S. congressman backed by President Donald Trump, came under fire himself on Wednesday when he said Florida voters should not “monkey this up” by electing Gillum.

Critics blasted DeSantis for the comment, which they said was racist. Lawson said at the time that DeSantis was referring to Gillum’s political positions, not his race.

The robocall received by some voters on Friday included a message saying it was funded by The Road to Power, an anti-Semitic and white supremacist website linked to Idaho resident Scott Rhoades, the Tallahassee Democrat reported. The newspaper said his group had been behind robocall campaigns during political contests in states including Virginia, Oregon and California.

Rhoades could not immediately be reached for comment.