Wearing a black jacket and sunglasses, the suspect shot a security guard and young female cashier before showering the Borderline bar in Thousand Oaks near Los Angeles with bullets.
Officials have confirmed that the depraved attacker has been killed after a shootout with cops who were alerted to the attack at 11.20pm local time.
One sheriff's deputy is among the 11 people who have been confirmed as wounded in the mass shooting.
Revellers, mostly young college students, hid in bathrooms and attic spaces in a bid to flee the gunman who was carrying an "Uzi" machine gun, reports claim.
Police sources confirmed to NBC News that "multiple" people have been killed.
Marc Brown, an ABC7 reporter, said that he has seen one dead body outside the venue which does not match the description of the suspect.
Witness John Hodge told ABC7 he saw the suspect throwing smoke grenades into the front of the restaurant after shooting a security guard.
John, who was stood at the front door, said: "I just started hearing these big pops. Pop, pop, pop. There was probably three or four, I hit the ground.
"I look up – the security guard is dead. Well, I don't want to say he was dead, but he was shot. He was down”.
“The gunman was throwing smoke grenades all over the place.”
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR:
- A gunman killed 'multiple' people and injured at least 11 more after opening fire at a late-night bar in Thousand Oaks, California
- Police were called to the Borderline bar and grill at 11.20pm local time last night, officials have confirmed
- Armed with an 'Uzi' machine gun and smoke grenades, the shooter has been 'engaged and neutralised' by cops, the local mayor said
- Witnesses say he gunned down a security guard and a young girl working as a cashier at the venue
- One cop is among the wounded, reports local media
- Revellers used chairs to break windows in the bar in a bid to escape while others reportedly hid in bathrooms
The distraught witness said the gunman was wearing a black jacket, a hat and sunglasses and had a beard.
John’s stepdad Tom described seeing the shooter firing bullets a “young girl.”
He said: “He shot the front doorman, who was just a young man.
“Then he shot the cashier, just a young girl. Then he started moving to the right. He wasn't looking at us.
“Then he went into the office, where all the cash and stuff is. He didn't say anything at all. He just started shooting.”
The injured cop is reportedly "down and unresponsive" and cannot be reached by emergency medical workers.
One teenage reveller cut his hand while breaking a window in the bar using a chair in a desperate bid to escape the shooter, reports VC Star.
The attack has been upgraded to a level 2 mass casualty incident indicating that there are between 10 to 20 injured victims.
A police source told the LA Times that at least 30 shots have been fired.
Four ambulances have attended the scene to treat the injured victims.
Borderline is a western-themed bar and grill, open until 2am, with a 2,500 square feet dancefloor which is popular with late-night revellers.
Thousand Oaks is one of the safest towns in America, according to FBI stats.
It was ranked as the fourth safest among cities with a population greater than 100,000 in the United States by the FBI's 2013 Uniform Crime Reports.
More to follow…
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