A hero civilian said the “bravado” of a rifle-wielding gunman who killed two people an Idaho In-N-Out Burger “immediately crumbled” after he started firing back with his pistol, according to a report.
Jordan Salinas, 35, told ABC News that he noticed Chad Williams, 24, aiming his rifle at passing vehicles outside the Twin Falls fast food chain on Saturday when he decided to leap into action.
“I peeked around the right-hand side of that sign closest to the road, and that’s when I saw the individual with his rifle pointed at the vehicles,” Salinas told the outlet in a sit-down interview alongside his girlfriend, Emily Cohelo.
Salinas, a healthcare worker and the full-time caregiver for his brother, said Williams appeared calm as he aimed at cars — but his confidence quickly faded when he realized he was also in the line of fire.
“He seemed unusually comfortable aiming that rifle at those cars,” Salinas said. “As soon as some rounds started coming at him, everything changed immediately. All that bravado he had immediately crumbled.”
Salinas raised his FN Five-Seven – a semiautomatic pistol equipped with a suppressor – with both hands and squeezed off a round.
It was the first time he ever aimed his weapon at a living target, he told the Idaho Statesman.
He said he had trained for the moment after witnessing the 2021 mass shooting at the Boise Towne Square mall, in which two people were killed, and several more were wounded.
Both Salinas and an off-duty cop confronted Williams during the rampage before the gunman made his way toward an open parking lot at the Twin Falls visitor center and killed himself with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
“We believe these actions drove the suspect from the scene and prevented further casualties,” Twin Falls Police Chief Hicks said during a press conference on Sunday.
Two people were killed, including Christopher Claunch, 59, and In-N-Out employee Ashley Garibay, 23, according to family members.
Seven people were injured in the chaos. Five of the victims remained hospitalized on Sunday, including two in critical condition, cops said.
Williams was a dropout of the College of Southern Idaho who previously railed against crime in chilling X posts.
A motive in the shooting remains unclear.
