[9][10] He was remembered by his section chief, Norman E. Koehn, as a first-class soldier who never drank, swore, or chased girls and spent much time reading his Bible and writing long letters to his mother.

Unruh briefly found work as a sheet-metal worker before enrolling at the Temple University School of Pharmacy in Philadelphia but quit after a month citing "poor physical condition" as the reason.

[12] It was around this time that Unruh's relations with his neighbors began to deteriorate and his resentment grew over what he regarded as "derogatory remarks made about my character."

[15] At approximately 7 a.m. on September 6, 1949, Unruh ate a breakfast prepared by his mother, who then left to visit a neighbor, Carolina Pinner.

At about 9:20 a.m., armed with his Luger P08 pistol, an eight-round magazine, and more ammunition carried in his pockets, he left his apartment and walked out onto River Road in Camden.

Running to Cohen's pharmacy, Unruh encountered insurance man James Hutton and killed him when he didn't move out of his way.

Once in the apartment, Cohen climbed through a window and onto the porch roof, while Rose hid herself and their son, 12-year-old Charles, in separate closets.

Walking across the apartment, he spotted Cohen's mother Minnie, age 63, trying to call the police, and shot her several times.

Unruh then walked into the middle of River Road and fired at an approaching sedan,[17] killing the driver, Alvin Day, and causing the car to careen onto the sidewalk.

Unruh next fired upon another car coming down the street; its occupants, Charles Peterson and James Crawford, managed to escape to a nearby tavern and survived.

Witness William McNeely saw Frank Engel run out of the tavern and shoot at Unruh, but he apparently missed and then ran back inside.

He then found Madeline Harris and her son Armand outside their home hanging out blankets to dry and shot at them; both were injured but survived.

The first officer on the scene was Detective William E. Kelly Sr. A gunfight ensued,[17] during which journalist Philip Buxton of the Camden Evening Courier found Unruh's number in the local telephone directory and dialled it.

[9] Two armed officers, patrolman Charles Hance and Captain Everett Joslin, went up to the first floor of the building and shouted, "Come down with your hands up" to which Unruh replied, "I give up.

Unruh emerged from the room and stumbled down the stairs, fell at the feet of the officers, and was handcuffed by Sergeant Earl Wright.

Unruh was eventually diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia by psychologists and found to be insane, making him immune to criminal prosecution.