A heartbroken father has confirmed that his 22-year-old son is among the 12 dead victims after a gunman opened fire during college night at a crowded country music bar in California.
Cody Coffman was killed in the massacre at the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks on Wednesday night.
His father Jason Coffman sobbed as he revealed that authorities told him on Thursday that his oldest son had died.
He said he spoke to his son just before he went to the bar Wednesday night and told him not to drink and drive.
The last thing he told his son was: ‘I love you.’
Cody, who was about to go into the military, was among 11 killed inside the bar by gunman Ian David Long. Sheriff’s sergeant, Ron Helus, who was first on the scene was also killed. Long was also later found dead after taking his own life.
Cody Coffman, 22, was killed in the massacre at the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, California on Wednesday night
Alaina Housley, the niece of actress Tamera Mowry-Housley and her husband Adam Housley, was also still unaccounted for seven hours after the shooting
His father Jason had earlier rushed to the bar after hearing news of the shooting and calls to his son’s cellphone went unanswered. He feared the worst when a tracking app on his son’s phone indicated the device was still inside the venue.
‘It’s there, it’s not moving, that’s the problem… His phone is at the club,’ Jason told CNN from outside the bar.
‘I’m in the dark right now and it’s tearing me up,’ he said. ‘I want my son. I want to know… if the Lord took him away, we know that he’s in a better place but if he’s not, please let us know. Let me know.’
Jason said he was alerted to the shooting when several of Cody’s friends started banged on their front door after 1am.
Jake Dunham, 21, has not made contact with his parents in the hours after the shooting. His father said he went to the bar to play pool with friends
‘Some of his girlfriends got out but they didn’t know where Cody was,’ Jason said.
Meanwhile, ‘Sister, Sister’ actress Tamera Mowry-Housley has revealed her husband’s niece is still missing as frantic relatives wait for news of those who are unaccounted for.
Alaina Housley’s uncle Adam, who is a former Fox News correspondent and is married to Tamera, rushed to the hospital at 3.30am in search of his niece.
The teenager is a freshman at Pepperdine University and had been at the bar with several friends. Her Apple Watch and iPhone appeared to still show her location as inside the bar.
‘My gut is saying she’s inside the bar, dead. I’m hoping I’m wrong,’ Adam told the LA Times.
Two of her friends jumped out of a broken window and ran for safety but say they lost Alaina in the mayhem. They are in hospital being treated for major injuries.
Jake Dunham, 21, has also not made contact with his parents in the hours after the shooting.
He had gone to the bar to play pool with his friends, his father Ken Dunham told NBC Los Angeles.
‘I keep calling it but there’s no answer,’ Ken said. ‘It just keeps ringing out… he always answers his phone.’
A number of other parents rushed to the bar and used tracking devices to look up their children’s iPhones and iWatches.
Many of the devices are still located inside the bar and the parents say they haven’t heard from their loved ones since the shooting happened.
Actress Tamera Mowry-Housley and her husband Adam Housley (left) are still searching for their niece Alaina Housley (right). Her suitemate at Pepperdine University had posted photos on Twitter saying she was missing
Cody’s distraught father rushed to the bar after hearing the news as calls to the college student’s cellphone went unanswered. He is pictured showing a photo of his son outside the bar
There were roughly 100 people inside the bar when the gunman opened fire.
Many of those inside were students at Pepperdine University and others are thought to have gone to California Lutheran University – both are Christian schools.
The Ventura County Sheriff’s office said the victim notification process was ‘slow and methodical’. They said they were doing everything possible to notify relatives.
Authorities said Long was wearing a hood and dressed all in black when he used a smoke bomb and handgun to open fire at the bar.
Ventura County Sheriff Ron Helus was among those killed. He was shot multiple times by the gunman after responding to the first 911 calls and later died in hospital
Patrons screamed in fear, shouted ‘get down!’ and used barstools to smash second-floor windows and jump to safety as gunfire erupted at the bar, a hangout popular with students from nearby California Lutheran University.
The dead included 11 people inside the bar and sheriff’s sergeant Ron Helus, a 29-year veteran of the department, who was the first officer inside the door.
Authorities said 21 people injured in the shooting had been released from various hospitals by Thursday morning.
‘It’s a horrific scene in there,’ Ventura County Sheriff Geoff Dean said. ‘There’s blood everywhere.’
The gunman, who was a former marine, deployed a smoke device and used a .45-caliber handgun in the attack.
He first fired on a person working the door and then appeared to shoot at random at people inside, according to witnesses.
Ian Long, 28, is the gunman who opened fire on Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, California, on Wednesday
A shirtless man and two others carry an injured person out of the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, California, on Wednesday night after a gunman opened fire at 11.20pm
EMTs treat a victim from the shooting at Borderline Bar and Grill on Wednesday. In addition to the 12 innocent people who were killed, another 12 at least were injured