Three people died and seven others were injured in a fatal shooting on Saturday, August 1, 2026, at a recently opened In-N-Out Burger restaurant in Twin Falls, Idaho. Police Chief Matthew Hicks stated that 24-year-old gunman Chad Williams acted alone and died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, while an off-duty state trooper and an armed citizen intervened by returning fire.
Shooting at Twin Falls In-N-Out Burger Leaves Three Dead
The violence erupted around 2 p.m. on Saturday at the In-N-Out restaurant located in a busy shopping plaza in Twin Falls, a southern Idaho city of about 56,000 residents. Hundreds of people were in the area when the incident began. According to Police Chief Matthew Hicks, the suspected gunman, 24-year-old Chad Williams, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and responding police found his body near the restaurant, as detailed by Twin Falls spokesperson Josh Palmer. In all, three people died and seven others were injured. Authorities reported Sunday that two of the injured were treated at a hospital and released, three were stable, and two remained in critical condition. One of those killed was an employee, according to a statement released early Sunday on social media by In-N-Out owner Lynsi Snyder. Officials had not yet released the names, ages, or other details of the victims as they were still working to notify relatives, according to Palmer. The FBI encouraged the public on Sunday to submit images and videos related to the shooting.
Law Enforcement Credits Armed Citizen and Off-Duty Trooper
Police credited an off-duty state trooper and an armed citizen with firing back at the gunman and diverting him away from the restaurant. The identities of the off-duty officer and the citizen were not immediately disclosed. “We believe their actions helped drive the suspect away from the scene, preventing further casualties,” Chief Hicks said at a Sunday news conference, commending their “heroic action to stop this incident.” Investigators are currently working to determine Williams’ motivations, and Hicks noted that the suspect’s family is cooperating fully with law enforcement. Additionally, Hicks warned the public about misinformation spreading online that identified an unrelated man as the shooter, emphasizing that the man had “no involvement in this incident whatsoever.” Detectives are interviewing witnesses from the busy shopping plaza where the restaurant opened just a week earlier on July 24, as part of the California-based company’s recent expansion into Idaho.
Witnesses Describe Restaurant Chaos and Drive-Thru Evacuations
Witnesses recounted a chaotic scene as the shooting unfolded both inside and outside the restaurant. Lane Koehn, 34, stated he was stopped at a nearby stoplight when he saw a person carrying an AR-style rifle emerge from the drive-thru as a man with a pistol began firing at the shooter. Koehn watched someone in an In-N-Out uniform drag a coworker bleeding from a gunshot wound to the chest across the parking lot, and stayed with the injured employee until paramedics arrived. Video captured by a driver across the street showed a person dressed in black walking up to a white car, opening the driver-side door, and reaching into the trunk. Twin Falls resident Haley Dodaro, 43, and her mother were waiting in the drive-thru line when they saw workers and patrons fleeing, initially mistaking the incident for a fire before a traffic director warned them of a shooter. Inside, Burley resident Nayeli Rodriguez, 40, heard shots from the kitchen while waiting for food with her daughters. An employee alerted customers that it was a shooting and told everyone to get down before Rodriguez and her family fled to safety.
Investigation and Community Recovery Moving Forward
As the community of Twin Falls processes the tragedy, local authorities and federal law enforcement agencies could release further findings as witness interviews and digital evidence reviews proceed. The FBI’s public call for digital media may yield additional timelines or details regarding the suspect’s movements before he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Future updates from city officials are likely to provide clarity on the conditions of the remaining hospitalized victims once family notifications are finalized. The shooting occurred roughly 130 miles southeast of Boise and 75 miles north of the Nevada border.