Shooting Spree in Alabama

A single gunman carried out the killings before turning the gun on himself, the Public Safety Department said in a statement.

"This is a very complicated investigation that is unfolding," the department said.

Police began to uncover the grisly rampage when four adults and a child were found shot dead inside a residence in the town of Samson.

"It is believed the gunman left that location, traveling on Alabama route 52 where he shot at a state trooper's vehicle, striking the vehicle seven times and slightly wounding the trooper due to broken glass," said the department.

The shooter, who was not identified, gunned down another individual at Samson Pipe and Supply.

He apparently killed another victim at a service station before heading to Reliable Metal Products where he "fired an estimated 30-round burst."