At least seven people are dead after a shooting rampage near Miami. The gunman, Pedro Vargas, allegedly set fire to his apartment building, killed six people in the surrounding area, and took two neighbors hostage. He was shot dead early Saturday in a police raid. A Florida police spokesperson announced the standoff had come to an end.

Carl Zogby: “Eight hours after this situation started early Saturday morning, SWAT units moved in and shot and killed the suspect. At the time, the suspect was holding at least two hostages at gunpoint. and the decision was made that negotiations were to cease and action was to be taken immediately. The end result: Seven people have lost their lives in this incident — six innocent victims and the one shooter. Now starts the investigation how and why this happened.”

According to police, Vargas had no known criminal history.