Who's the retired Ventura sergeant tied to the O.C. bar shooting? Here's what we know

John Snowling, 59 a retired Ventura police officer, was identified as the gunman in Wednesday night's shooting at a biker bar in Trabuco Canyon, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

Snowling worked for the Ventura Police Department from July 1986 until he retired as a sergeant in February 2014.

During his 27-year career with the Ventura agency, Snowling served as police union president and worked as a motorcycle officer and field training officer, according to past news reports. He also served with the department's Special Enforcement Team. In July 2000, he was promoted to corporal and to sergeant in January 2013.

Police Chief Darin Schindler said Thursday Snowling, as a retired officer, possessed a permit to carry a concealed weapon. He could not be sure if the retired sergeant still had his service weapon, although Snowling would have qualified to purchase it upon his retirement.

The chief said he did not know if Snowling had any disciplinary actions because he had been gone since 2014 and the agency destroys records after five years.

Schindler said he did work with Snowling but didn't know him well. They worked on different tracks.

Snowling had lived with his wife Marie in Camarillo but the couple had begun divorce proceedings, according to Ventura County Superior Court records. Paperwork for the divorce was first filed in December 2022 and continues, court records show.

Neighbors said the Snowlings have two adult children.

Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes said during a news conference Thursday John Snowling had been living in Ohio. He had traveled back to California but it was not yet clear if Snowling had returned solely for the shooting.

Barnes said Snowling entered Cook's Corner, the Trabuco Canyon bar, and shot at his wife, striking her once. He also shot the person she was dining with.

Marie Snowling survived the shooting but her dinner companion did not, the sheriff said. Two other patrons were killed by the retired sergeant's gunfire.

Barnes said John Snowling entered the bar with two handguns, and eventually returned to his truck where he removed a third handgun and a shotgun, which he used to fire upon sheriff's deputies. The sheriff said Snowling's weapons were acquired legally.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Here's what we know about the Ventura police sergeant