The two civilian victims of the Colorado Planned Parenthood shooting were named by family members, local media reported on Sunday.
Authorities in Colorado Springs have said they will not formally identify the man and woman until Monday, when autopsies are complete.
The woman who died was identified as Jennifer Markovsky, a Hawaii-born resident of Colorado Springs. The man who was killed was named as Ke’Arre Stewart.
The third person killed was University of Colorado–Colorado Springs police officer Garrett Swasey, a 44-year-old father of two who responded to the scene after shooting began at 11.38am on Friday. Nine people were wounded in the attack; all are expected to recover.
A suspect, Robert Lewis Dear, is in police custody. Reports – unconfirmed by official sources – have said the 57-year-old told officers interviewing him “no more baby parts”, a presumed reference to recent uproar over the alleged discussion of the sale of fetal tissue by Planned Parenthood staff.
Though no motive was officially confirmed, on Sunday Planned Parenthood used Twitter to say: “We now know the man responsible for the tragic shooting at PP’s health center in CO was motivated by opposition to safe and legal abortion.”
Police said Dear would appear in court on Monday, at 1.30pm local time. A statement issued on Sunday said: “The warrants with regard to this investigation have been sealed.
“Information regarding the timeline of events, motive of suspect and type of weapon used are part of the active investigation and are unable to be released at this time.”
The Denver Post reported that Markovsky was 36 and a mother of two children. Stewart, the newspaper said, was 29 and a father of two. An army veteran, he had served one tour in Iraq.
Hawaii News Now reported that Markovsky’s family said she had been at the clinic supporting a friend, who was shot in the hand.
“The family is grieving. We’re all shocked,” the website quoted one of Markovsky’s relatives as saying.
Markovsky’s father, John Ah-King, wrote on Facebook: “To my daughter Jennifer I’m going to miss so much, I lost you in a senseless shooting in Colorado Springs, Planned Parenthood.
“Life was too short my beloved daughter, I was waiting to see you soon, I’m going to miss you, my memories of you will live on in my heart and mind! Missing you!!!”
In Colorado, kktv.com reported the identification of Stewart.
“Stewart’s wife said he leaves behind his children, whose lives will now never be the same,” the report said.
Also on Sunday, Officer Swasey’s family released a statement in which they said: “Our loss cannot be expressed in words.
“While the nation now knows Garrett as a hero who gave his life for others,” the statement continued, “he was also a devoted husband of 17 years and a wonderful father to his two children. His greatest joys were his family, his church, and his profession.”
Swasey moved to Colorado in the 1980s, to pursue competitive figure skating. On Sunday the Olympic silver medallist Nancy Kerrigan said he had been “one of my best friends” while they were growing up together in Melrose, Massachusetts.
