California gunman was 'ticking time bomb' and 'sadistic', says ex-coach

A gunman who killed 12 people at a bar in California was a "ticking time bomb", according to his former running coach.

Ian David Long, a former Marine machine-gunner who served in Afghanistan, opened fire at the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks on Wednesday night, killing 11 people and one of the police officers who responded.

He then fatally shot himself.

Evie Cluke, one of Long's coaches at his high school track team, described the killer as a "ticking time bomb" who she even witnessed assault another coach.

Dominique Colell, another coach, said Long grabbed her rear and around the waist when she refused to return his mobile phone.

She also said he once made a gun signal with his hand and mimicked shooting her.

Ms Cluke said: "When Dominique turned around and saw that, she turned pale as a ghost and it was very, very scary.

"Just sadistic... He was out of control. He would scream and cuss and his face would turn bright red and people would actually back away from him."

Ms Colell kicked Long off the school track team after he assaulted her, but said she and Ms Cluke were urged by the school's head coach to reconsider, as he said it might compromise Long's goal of joining the Marines.

Ms Cluke said the head coach reversed Ms Colell's decision and then the school's principal, who has now retired, brushed it off as a one-time incident.

Ms Cluke repeatedly raised his behavioural issues with administrators.

She said she told them: "You need to do something about this kid. He needs some help.

"And they're like, 'Well, he's got a good heart he'll be fine. Just talk to him.'"

No responses to the allegations have been received by Associated Press, who conducted the interviews.

Ms Cluke added that she once asked Long why he wanted to join the military.

"He said he wanted to be in the Marines because he wanted to go fight in the war for our country and he wanted to kill for our country.

"When you hear somebody say they want to be in the military because they want to kill people in the name of our country, that's chilling. It chilled me right down to my bones," she said.

Ms Cluke said school administrators should have acted on the behavioural problems and added: "It's not the military or video games or music that causes this. It's the inaction of people in authority.

"The warning signs were there."