CHARLESTON, S.C. (WBTW)-State senator and reverend Clementa C. Pinckney is the only known victim of the deadly shooting that happened last night at the historic AME church in Charleston.  

According to the website of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal church in Charleston, Reverend   Pinckney was born in Jasper county in 1973, he answered the call to preach at the age of 13 and received his first appointment to pastor at the age of 18.

He received a master’s of divinity from the Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary. At 23, Pinckney was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives, and in 2000, he was elected to the state senate as a democrat.

He was married and had two daughters.

Tim Scott, a U.S. senator for South Carolina said in a statement after the shooting “we stand together in prayer for pastor Pinckney and his congregation at Emanuel AME, and for the families who are enduring unimaginable pain at the loss of their loved ones.”

The suspect is believed to be a 20 year-old, white male with blonde hair. His picture and the car authorities believe he was driving can be seen here: http://digital-stage.wbtw.com/story/29348313/gov-nikki-haleys-statement-on-charleston-shooting.
FBI, SLED and local Charleston authorities have been working around the clock since they received the phone call at 9 a.m. Wednesday night. If you know any information at all, you are asked to call 1-800-FBI-TIPS.
Count on News13 to keep you covered all day with live team coverage as we work to learn more details on the victims and the shooters.