Parents of the man accused of firing rounds from an AR 15 rifle and stabbing a woman outside a Canoga Park restaurant said they long feared the call they received Thursday about their son.
Shayne Suffern, 29, was carrying an AR-15 rifle, 200 rounds of ammunition and 13 fully loaded 40-round magazines outside Westfield Topanga Mall when he was arrested after a series of terrifying events unfolded at midday Thursday outside a Cheesecake Factory in the west San Fernando Valley, police said. Several rounds were fired from the high-powered rifle — no one was struck by gunfire — before a woman was stabbed in what investigators said appeared to be a random attack.
Suffern’s father, speaking from his North Carolina home, told NBCLA his son is an Army veteran with PTSD and schizophrenia. He served in Poland as a communications specialist, his father said.
The family has been trying for years to get him help for his mental health, he said, adding that his son was an avid gun collector. Suffern moved to Los Angeles about a month ago, he said.
“Me and my wife, we sort of felt that it was a matter of time before we got this call,” father Shayne Eric Suffern said. “Hopefully, it wasn’t the call where he had been unalive. We’ve been seeking help since Day 1 after he got discharged.”
The father said Suffern was medically discharged from the military.
Shayne Eric Suffern said he is heartbroken over the woman who was attacked.
“I’m just praying for your speedy recovery,” he said. “I am so sorry and ashamed of what has happened.
“I’m just beside myself.”
The LAPD said Suffern had a prior case involving the negligent discharge of a firearm in public. According to LA Superior Court records, he faced charges in February 2023 of willful discharge of a firearm and possession of an assault weapon.
New details are revealed in a frightening encounter outside a Canoga Park cheesecake factory. Annette Arreola reports for Today in LA on Friday Aug. 22, 2025.
In October 2024 he was sentenced to two years of mental health diversion, with a condition prohibiting him from owning or possessing any dangerous or deadly weapons. He previously had a hearing for this case scheduled in January 2026.
According to police, the AR 15-style rifle was not California compliant and had high-capacity magazines that were also not legal in California.
The woman who was stabbed ran into a Cheesecake Factory carrying her young child and asking for help. Her injuries were not considered life-threatening.
Police said Suffern had “notes, writings, manifesto-style writings,” but none referenced a specific incident. The notes reference hatred toward women and children, police said.
Suffern was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, the LAPD said. There is no known relationship between Suffern and the woman and child.
Click here for a list of Southern California mental health resources.