Oregon college shooter takes his own life

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The lone gunman at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, southwestern Oregon, took his own life after engaging with officers at the scene, a law enforcement officer said on Saturday.

The cause of Christopher Harper-Mercer's death in the shooting rampage that killed nine people on Thursday was determined by the Washington state medical examiner, said Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin at a news briefing.

A timeline released by investigators shows that the 26-year-old exchanged gunfire with two officers at 10:46 a.m. local time, eight minutes after the first emergency call was made from the school in a rural community. He was reportedly "down" two minutes later.

At a briefing on Friday, Celinez Nunez of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) said five pistols and one rifle were recovered at the college, along with magazines of ammunition and a flak jacket. Two pistols, four rifles and a shotgun were found at the shooter's apartment.

Hanlin updated on Saturday that another handgun was found at the home.

Identities of those killed in the mass shooting, whose age ranges from 18 to 67, were released on Friday.

In a statement released by authorities, relatives of the gunman said "our prayers go out to all of the families of those who died and were injured.

Ian Mercer, father of the the gunman, told CNN that he did not know his son had firearms and that he could not understand "it was so easy to get so many guns."

Outside his residence in southern California, the father talked for the first time with a reporter on Saturday. Asked about what he thought about gun laws, he expressed his belief that "it has to change."

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