(Sunday, March 2, 1975, 11:30 a.m. PDT) — A 25-year-old motel guest “went berserk” today, unleashing a deadly shooting spree that left five people dead and one injured in the quiet Northern California fishing village of Smith River before being arrested hours later in Oregon.

Four people were initially killed but the death toll would rise to five on March 3, 1975, after one of the critically wounded victims succumbed to his injuries.

The suspect, Robert Paul Sander of Cincinnati, Ohio, was arrested unarmed and without resistance by Oregon State Police on the Redwood Highway near Grants Pass approximately three hours after the rampage at the Ship Ashore Motel.

Authorities said Sander denied any involvement in the shooting.

The violence began around 11:30 a.m. Sunday when Sander opened fire from a balcony overlooking the motel parking lot, witnesses said.

Barbara Harmon, 58, of Fortuna, California, was killed, and her husband, Percy Harmon, 69, was critically wounded. Percy Harmon died the next day at a hospital, becoming the fifth victim.

Sander then stormed into the motel lobby, where he fatally shot the manager, Gordon Knott, 42, and his wife, Shirlee Knott, 30.

A maid, Ella Beam, 22, of Brookings, Oregon, was also gunned down after she stepped out of a room upon hearing the gunfire.

“She came out of the door after hearing the shots, and he pumped her one,” said Don Sanders, a local liquor store owner who witnessed the aftermath.

Sanders, who is not related to the suspect, said the gunman “probably just went berserk.” He described the scene as “a terrible deal” that left the community shaken.

Denise DeGraff, 17, of Smith River, California, was hospitalized with a hip wound and listed in stable condition. Another victim, Carla Brough, a young girl from Brookings, Oregon, sustained minor injuries from flying glass.

Del Norte County Sheriff’s deputies said the gunman opened fire on the parking lot from the balcony before entering the motel lobby and resuming shooting.

Investigators found no apparent motive for the attack. Deputies later discovered a new rifle box and ammunition in Sander’s motel room, according to authorities.

Sander had reportedly stayed at the motel the previous night and was described as a “wonderful guest” by a maid who cleaned his room Sunday morning. “He seemed perfectly normal,” the maid told Sanders.

In Cincinnati, Sander’s mother said her son had quit his department store job on Feb. 17, 1975, and told her he had purchased a rifle. Sander has a criminal record, having been convicted of robbery in 1969 and placed on probation for three years in 1970.

The shooting has left the tight-knit Smith River community in shock. “All the people in the neighborhood were really scared,” Sanders said.