24-year-old man shot in the head by gunman with AR-style weapon in SC factory dies

An employee shot at an Anderson County plastics plant last week has died.

Anderson County Coroner Greg Shore identified the man as Iain Samuel Peare, 24, of Belton. Peare was shot in the head by a gunman who then killed himself with an AR-style rifle on April 5 at Frankische, a family-owned company headquartered in Bavaria.

A woman was grazed by a bullet and survived, Anderson County Sheriff Chad McBride said during a news conference last Wednesday.

Shore last week identified the gunman as 51-year-old Bruce Vandermosten, a former employee who lived in Anderson.

McBride said Vandermosten quit his job at Frankische the day before the shooting and entered Frankische by an unlocked side door. Peare was working at the station closest to the door.

The gunman fired about six rapid-fire rounds.

In a news conference Wednesday, McBride described the shooter as “just legit crazy.”

McBride said Vandermosten killed himself with a single shot.

About 30 employees were at the factory and all but the two who were shot were able to run next door to Tipsy Tavern restaurant, where workers locked the doors and turned out the lights.

McBride said investigators are not certain what caused the shooting, but he had been told it had to do with the gunman’s romantic interest in a woman that was not reciprocated.

He said he did not believe anyone was targeted specifically.

McBride said the incident was over by the time deputies arrived. None of them fired a weapon.

This story was originally published April 11, 2022 at 8:51 AM.