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$1 million bond set for Charleston shooting suspect

Things to know:

  • Nine people – three men and six women – were shot and killed during a prayer meeting at a church in Charleston, South Carolina.
  • Officials arrested Dylann Roof, 21, after a traffic stop in Shelby, North Carolina. Authorities said Roof used an ATM on Providence Road in Charlotte.
  • FBI and Charleston officials are investigating the shooting as a hate crime.

Dylann Roof, the alleged gunman authorities say is responsible for killing nine people in a Charleston, South Carolina, church Wednesday night, has been apprehended, authorities said.

Police said Roof, 21, was arrested Thursday during a traffic stop in Shelby, North Carolina, about 250 miles north of Charleston. He was charged with murder and extradited back to Charleston Thursday evening.

HOW TO HELP: Mother Emanuel Hope Fund was created to help cover funeral expenses for the victims. You can donate at THIS website.

You can also donate at Wells Fargo:

Reference the "Mother Emanuel Hope Fund" at the following address:

Mother Emanuel Hope Fund
C/O City of Charleston
P.O. Box 304
Charleston, SC 29402

NEW INFORMATION: 

An affidavit just released provided more detail as to what investigators said happened inside the historic Emanuel AME church in Charleston, where Dylan Roof is accused of shooting and killing nine people Wednesday.

ARTICLE: Documents reveal details of Roof inside church

UPDATE 5:30 P.M. FRIDAY:

In a statement given to CNN by Dylann Roof's public defender, the Roof family extends "their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims…"

"Words cannot express our shock, grief and disbelief as to what happened that night," the statement continues.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of those killed this week.  We have all been touched by the moving words from the victim's families offering God's forgiveness and love in the face of such horrible suffering."

The statement concludes by asking for privacy for the Roof family.

UPDATE at 2:45 P.M. FRIDAY:

A $1 million bond was set for the Charleston shooting suspect at a hearing Friday where relatives of the victims made emotional statements.

IMAGES: $1 million bond set for Charleston shooting suspect

The judge said he is not allowed to set bond for murder charges, but the $1 million is for possession of a firearm in a violent crime.

WATCH THE EMOTIONAL HEARING

Several of the victims' family members spoke to Roof in a very emotional hearing.

"We welcomed you with open arms. May God have mercy on you," Tywanza Sanders family member said.

"I am very angry, but DePayne taught us that we are the family that love built," DePayne Middleton-Doctor's sister said.

UPDATE at 12:53 P.M. FRIDAY:

NAACP President Cornell William Brooks held a news conference in Charleston just after noon Friday.

"A stranger welcomed into the house of God...could lay down a Bible and take up a gun...it is incomprehensible," Brooks said.

Brooks said the shootings were a hate crime and as such, it is a crime perpetuated against the soul of the country.

"This is a moment in which we have to seriously reexamine our public policy," said Brooks. "Until we address the underlying racial animus, we miss the point. We cannot have the Confederate flag waving in the state capitol."

#NAACP President: "We cannot have the Confederate flag waving in the state capitol" #CharlestonShooting pic.twitter.com/JqZpVeN7lz

UPDATE at 12:41 P.M. FRIDAY:

The deadly attack on a Charleston, South Carolina church almost did not happen.

Dylann Roof told police that he "almost didn't go through with it because everyone was so nice to him," sources said.

STORY: Dylann Roof almost backed out because parishioners were 'so nice'

UPDATE at 11:40 A.M. FRIDAY:

After the Mayor’s news conference, Channel 9 reporter Blake Hanson spoke with a man who left the church an hour before the shooting.

He was close friends with Sen. Pinckney and showed Channel 9 photos from when Pinckney married his daughter and her husband, and remarried him and his wife last year.

UPDATE at 11:00 A.M. FRIDAY:

Charleston Mayor Joe Riley is speaking in front of Mother Emanuel Church.

Riley announced a prayer vigil being held Friday night at TD Arena on the College of Charleston campus.

"This person had a crazy idea he would be able to divide, but all he did was make us more united," Riley said. "When we got that guy in custody, an audible gasp of relief was heard in our community and in people's hearts."

The mayor was asked about the death penalty and he said, "I personally am not a proponent of the death penalty."

He was also asked about Debbie Dills, the flower shop worker who spotted the suspect in Shelby. "It is a wonderful American story," he said.

#Charleston mayor: Charleston is a loving community and one where citizens of all races, backgrounds work together pic.twitter.com/XuPPocBaFv

UPDATE at 10:00 A.M. FRIDAY:

Police in Charleston say the suspect in a fatal church shooting at a historic black church is charged with nine counts of murder and a weapon charge.

Police spokesman Charles Francis said Friday that 21-year-old Dylann Roof is charged with the 10 total counts in the Wednesday night fatal church shooting.

The weapon charge against Roof is possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime. Under South Carolina law, it's illegal to use a weapon such as a knife or gun to commit a violent crime whether or not the weapons is legally owned.

UPDATE at 9:45 A.M. FRIDAY:

Libraries in Charleston are closed Friday in the aftermath of the church shootings. One of the victims, Cynthia Hurd, was a librarian.

Libraries closed following #churchshooting. Victim Cynthia Hurd, @SenatorMGraham's sister, was a librarian. @wsoctv pic.twitter.com/pkK2hr54co

UPDATE at 9:13 A.M. FRIDAY:

After the City of Charleston set up a fund to help families of the nine people killed in a mass shooting at a Charleston church, Boeing announced it was donating $100,000.

"Our community is experiencing immense grief and mourning as we all try to come to grips with this horrible tragedy," said Beverly Wyse, Boeing South Carolina vice president and general manager, in a news release.

Boeing donates $100k to fund created for Charleston victims’ families

UPDATE at 8:52 A.M. FRIDAY:

Dylann Roof will make his first court appearance in Charleston at 2 p.m. Friday.

Roof is unlikely to physically appear in court, as most initial hearings are conducted over a video link with the county jail.

NEW INFO: suspect Dylann Roof will make court appearance at 2 pm Friday. http://t.co/sz3BivUcx3 pic.twitter.com/CFBMq8B4YK

UPDATE at 8:25 A.M. FRIDAY:

Carson Cowles, an uncle to alleged killer Dylann Roof, said his nephew is “guilty as hell” in a mass shooting at a bible study that left nine people dead.

Uncle: Dylann Roof is 'guilty as hell' and will 'ride the lightning'

IMAGE GALLERIES:

UPDATE at 8:14 A.M. FRIDAY:

Members of the FBI and ATF entered the Emanuel AME Church.

Local nuns and other community members were leaving flowers outside the church Friday morning.

Two sisters of a local Catholic Church came by to read scripture, pray at Emanuel AME. @wsoctv #prayforCharleston pic.twitter.com/b3s0UsakLR

UPDATE at 8:05 A.M. FRIDAY:

Accused Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof has confessed to shooting and killing nine people Wednesday night, CNN is reporting.

Dylann Roof confesses to Charleston church shooting, reports say

Officials told the cable news network that Roof told investigators that he wanted to start a race war when he opened fire at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church.

He told police that he bought the .45-caliber hangun used in the shootings, officials told CNN.

An official said earlier that Roof's father bought him a Glock handgun for his birthday.

Roof is scheduled for a bond hearing Friday afternoon.

RELATED CONTENT:

UPDATE at 7:28 A.M. FRIDAY:

South Carolina governor Nikki Haley told the 'Today Show' that the church shooter should get the death penalty.

"I have absolutely no problem with the death penalty," she said. "Here in South Carolina, you do something like this to nine families you will absolutely pay the price. We will fight this as hard as we possibly can."

The Justice Department's Civil Rights Division and the FBI are opening a hate crime investigation into the shooting.

"You want to see hate crime, watch how we handle him," Haley told ABC News 4 in Charleston. "That will show you how we deal with hate crimes in South Carolina."

ARTICLE: Charleston church shooting victims’ biographies

9 ribbons on the fence of Emanuel AME Church in honor of the victims of Wednesday's bible study massacre. @wsoctv pic.twitter.com/pVyUqu4uBi

UPDATE at 7:10 A.M. Friday:

Debbie Dills, the florist who is being called a hero after she spotted the car Dylann Roof was driving, and Shelby Police Chief Jeff Ledford were interviewed on 'Good Morning America.'

Click "PLAY" to watch:

Florist spots Hyundai at light, helps catch shooting suspect