From the sidewalk near the home of the alleged gunman in the Kelly Elementary School shooting, you can make out some words scribbled on his bedroom walls. One wall reads “Christians,” the other “to destroy it.”
Brendan O'Rourke, 41, was arrested Friday after witnesses say he emptied his gun into a crowd of children, grazing two girls with bullets and sending other children running for their lives.
Neighbors describe O'Rourke as a loner, who would yell obscenities in the middle of the night.
“The noise was pretty much a lot of banging. Banging on the walls,” said neighbor Victoria Sanchez. “Never saw any friends, any family.”
The manager of his Oceanside apartment complex, Canyon Creek Apartments, recently gave O'Rourke an eviction notice, giving him three months to move out, according to Sanchez.
“It's really scary. It's a serious situation. I've never heard of anyone in their right mind going to a playground and shooting children,” said Chris Garruto.
The last time Garruto saw his next-door neighbor was on television, when he was being taken into custody.
“I don't know if he was paranoid. When he would drive he would always look around a lot. I didn't really think anything of it, but he did give out a weird vibe,” Garruto said. “He was a quiet guy. Kept to himself… He would shut his door really quick if we were coming out at the same time.”
Even more disturbing is the view from the street. The word "Christians” scribbled on his bedroom wall. On the other side, is the letter "g" followed by “to destroy it" right above his bedroom mirror.
Neighbors say O'Rourke worked as a security guard. But about a week ago, it seemed like he stop going to work.
“His car would always be gone from eight to four, and I saw the car there the whole week, and I was like, that's weird. He's not working,” said Sanchez.
Investigators say they still don't have a motive for the shooting.
“I still can't believe it. It's like a dream,” said Garruto.
O'Rourke is being held at the Vista Detention center without bail. He's scheduled to make his first court appearance on Wednesday and faces six counts of attempted murder.
