2 dead, 1 hurt after Anderson Co. plant shooting

ANDERSON, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - The Anderson County Sheriff’s Office confirmed a second person has died after a shooting at Frankische USA LP Manufacturing plant.

Deputies responded to an active shooter armed with an AR-style rifle at the plant on AM Ellison Road around 10:34 p.m. Tuesday night. Two victims were transported to the hospital with injuries.

On Sunday, April 10, the coroner confirmed Iain Samuel Peare, 24, passed away from his injuries in the shooting. The coroner said Peare suffered a gunshot wound to the head.

We spoke to Peare’s mother, Amy Peare, nearly two weeks after the shooting. She told us, “his family, we’re all devastated. My daughter, my ex-husband, my fiancé, it’s beyond anything we could’ve imagined happening.” She added, “He loves people, people that touched his life, he just made them feel special and loved.”

The second victim, a woman, was only grazed by a bullet and will recover, the sheriff said.

According to Sheriff Chad McBride, the shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot before deputies were able to take them into custody. He added that no deputies fired their weapons during the incident.

The coroner’s office identified the shooter as Bruce D. Vandermosten, Jr., 51, of Anderson. He was a former employee at the plant who quit his job the day before.

As for the motive for the shooting, McBride said, “We just don’t understand why crazy people do crazy things.”

He said investigators are looking into reports that Vandermosten was infatuated with a coworker who didn’t reciprocate his feelings.

The sheriff said the two employees who were wounded were “opportunistic” victims that were not specifically targeted.

McBride said there were 30 employees at the plant when the shooting began. All of them got out safely, except for the two injured. According to McBride, employees at nearby Tipsy Tavern helped those escaping from the plant and called 911.

McBride commended the employees of Tipsy Tavern for their actions during the shooting.

“Tipsy Tavern helped keep a lot of folks safe there,” he said.

The Sheriff’s Office took plant employees over to another location to be reunited with their families after the scene was cleared.

The sheriff’s office performed active shooter training at the Fraenkische plant approximately a year ago.

“That could have saved some lives,” McBride said. “We’d like to think that is probably the case.”

The Fraenkische plant is a member of the Anderson Area Chamber of Commerce. The organization released the following statement:

“We are incredibly heartbroken to learn about the horrific incident at one of our beloved industries. To hear that one of our industry leaders suffered such a loss leaves us speechless.

“We are with our Anderson County community, businesses and law enforcement to support in any way we can during this time. The victims, their families, and the witnesses of this horror have our full prayers, thoughts and support.”

Wednesday morning, the flags at the plant were lowered to half staff.

The Coroner’s Office, The Anderson Police Department, Highway Patrol, Anderson EMS and the Sheriff’s Office all responded to the scene.

This is a developing situation. We will update this story as we learn more.

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