Meet the man who chased down the suspected Texas church shooter

SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas -- (KABB) -- A man dressed in black tactical-style gear and armed with an assault rifle opened fire inside a church in a small South Texas community on Sunday, killing 26 people and wounding at least 16 others in what the governor called the deadliest mass shooting in the state's history. The dead ranged in age from 5 to 72 years old.

The attacker has been identified as Devin Kelley. He's described as a white man in his 20s who was wearing black tactical gear and a ballistic vest when he pulled into a gas station across from the First Baptist Church around 11:20 a.m.

He crossed the street and started firing a Ruger AR rifle at the church, said Freeman Martin, a regional director of the Texas Department of Safety, then continued firing after entering the white, wood-frame building, where an 11 a.m. service was scheduled. As he left, he was confronted by an armed resident and another man who chased him. A short time later, the suspect was found dead in his vehicle at the county line, Martin said.

One of the men who tracked down the alleged killer is Johnnie Langendorff. KABB/WOAI caught up with him when he came back to the scene to get his vehicle.

“I did what I thought I needed to do,” said Langendorff. “They said that there's a shooting. I pursued and I just, just did what I thought was the right thing to do.”

KABB/WOAI then asked Langendorff if he knew there were more weapons in the car and he possibly stopped further attacks.

“I didn't know that,” he said.