3 killed in shooting at Iowa state park, suspect also dead from apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound

A shooting at a state park in eastern Iowa early Friday morning left three people, plus the suspect, dead, authorities said.

Police were notified of a triple homicide at the Maquoketa Caves State Park campground just before 6:30 a.m., Mitch Mortvedt, assistant director of Iowa’s Division of Criminal Investigation, said in a statement.

The entrance to the Maquoketa Caves State Park is blocked as police investigate a shooting that three people plus the shooter dead on Friday. (NIKOS FRAZIER/)

According to Mortvedt, after officers located the three bodies, they realized that one camper was unnacounted for.

After searching the area, they found the body of a fourth man, west of the park.

The man was identified as 23-year-old Anthony Orlando Sherwin.

In this photo provided by the Iowa Department of Public Safety, Anthony Orlando Sherwin is shown.

“Sherwin appears to have suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and there is no danger to the public,” Mortvedt said without releasing information about the three victims’ identities or how they died.

The shooter came from Nebraska, Moertvedt said, and it doesn’t appear he had any prior relationship with the victims.

Officials did not say if Sherwin had a criminal record or a permit for his weapon.

The campground was evacuated and the entire park is now closed until further notice.

Autopsies on Sherwin and his three victims will be performed over the weekend, Mortvedt said, adding that more information will be available after those procedures.

Camp Shalom, a children’s summer camp nearby, announced on Facebook that all campers and staff were evacuated “as soon as we learned about” the situation. Everybody is accounted for, Shalom officials said.

Located in Jackson County, Maquoketa Caves has been a popular destination for picnickers and hikers since the 1860s, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. With more caves than any state park, it’s one of the state’s top outdoor attractions.

“I’m horrified by the shooting this morning at Maquoketa Caves State Park and devastated by the loss of three innocent lives,” Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said in a statement. “As we grieve this unimaginable tragedy, Kevin and I pray for the victims’ family members and the law enforcement officers who responded to the scene. We ask Iowans to do the same.”

With News Wire Services