GENESEE COUNTY, Mich. – Burton City Council candidate Kris Johns says he had a “surreal” encounter with the man accused of driving his truck into the Grand Blanc Township church and opening fire on congregants, just days before the deadly attack.
The attack happened at around 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 28, 2025, at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Investigators said the 40-year-old Burton man drove his truck into the church, fired his assault rifle, and set the building on fire. He was killed by officers in a shootout.
Johns said he met Sanford while canvassing for his campaign.
“I’ve never been to this home before, and he was extremely positive,” said Johns. “I pulled into his driveway, he met me. I asked if I could speak to him. He did. And really, within minutes, he asked me questions. The first question was about guns, then the next question was about what I thought about Mormons.”
Johns said he was shocked by the line of questioning.
“I expect presidential politics, state-level politics, to be discussed, but nothing really related to religion,” Johns said. “That was the first time, and it was very direct, and I could immediately tell that this was something he had been thinking about.”
According to Johns, the 40-year-old Burton man’s views about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints grew more pointed as the conversation continued.
“I could very much tell that he really had an issue with the faith,” Johns said. “At one point, he said, ‘You know, they told me I had my tattoos removed.’ And again, while he was calm, he was collected. I could definitely tell that this was something that was a real issue with him.”
The most striking moment, Johns said, came when the suspect repeatedly referred to LDS members as “the Antichrist.”
“That is something you do not forget in general conversation, let alone somebody whom you have met for just less than 20 minutes,” Johns said. “While very inflammatory and insensitive, it wasn’t anything he didn’t say in a way that would indicate any sort of maliciousness or vindictive potential behavior.”
Johns said nothing in the encounter suggested the man would later carry out violence.
“Truly nothing related to what he did this past Sunday,” he said.
When Johns saw the suspect’s photo after the attack, he said he was stunned.
“I was in church when I heard the news, and I did not make the connection,” Johns said. “It wasn’t until I saw a photo of him that I immediately knew.”
Johns, who has knocked on thousands of doors during his campaign, said he has never experienced anything like this. “I’ve knocked on 7,000 doors. I’ve never had anything like this happen,” he said.
As Burton and Grand Blanc Township grieve, Johns said he believes the community will endure.
“The community is resilient,” Johns said. “We’re a very peaceful community. This is extremely rare. I do know the community is rallying around both the family, because again, I’m a father. This person took away his own son’s father, and he took away other people’s parents. And that’s the part that’s really shocking.”
Johns emphasized that during his 20-minute exchange, the suspect made no political statements.
“Nothing political was said,” Johns said. “Yes, there was a Trump sign on his property. But nothing, red, blue, left, right, Trump, Biden was said. That’s the part I really want to stress.”
Johns said what he cannot shake is the duality he saw in that brief encounter.
“My daughter reaches out to him, and he holds her hand,” Johns said.
“He goes, ‘Your daughter is beautiful.’ He mentioned his son had a serious health condition. That’s the part that I cannot shake — that a father would do this to other families,” Johns said.