More times than not, that’s exactly what happens, but not in the case of Enrique Marquez.
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Two mosque members told Reuters news agency many fellow members of the attackers’ mosque had shunned the service.
He is believed by authorities to have bought two assault rifles used by Farook and Farook’s wife, Tashfeen Malik, in the December 2 mass shooting and terror attack that left 14 people dead in the Southern California city.
Proximity brought them together – Marquez moved in next door.
Marquez was Farook’s longtime friend and neighbor and was also related to Farook by marriage.
In 2007, Marquez converted to Islam.
That morning, sometime around 8:45 a.m., Malik searched social media for material relating to Islamic State, the complaint said.
The documents offer previously unreported details about his actions and attitudes, including his disdain for American Muslims who went into the military and killed other Muslims, along with the specifics of the attacks he and Mr. Marquez had plotted and the weaponry they amassed. The drive contained a spreadsheet of expenses from the 2011-12 period, which included guns, ammunition, and trips to firing ranges. Residents of the Riverside, California, the soft-spoken duo of Marquez and Farook started visiting local mosque four years ago and developed a keen interest in Islamic radicalism as well as collecting explosives and weapons.
According to the criminal complaint, in a thread on Marquez’s Facebook account, he says he is involved in terrorist plots. They would throw pipe bombs from an elevated position before escaping to conduct an attack elsewhere.
One of the sources added that the Federal Bureau of Investigation is trying to determine if Marquez was “grandstanding” during his interviews with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Marquez was a student at the college from 2009-2011 and from 2013-2015, and Farook was registered as a student from 2004-2010, the complaint states.
“His prior purchase of the firearms and ongoing failure to warn authorities about Farook’s intent to commit mass murder had fatal consequences”, said United States Attorney Eileen M. Decker in a statement.
Marquez, 24, was charged Thursday with conspiring to provide material support to terrorists for plotting with gunman Syed Rizwan Farook to launch attacks in 2011 and 2012 at a community college and congested freeway at rush hour that they never carried out.
During a court appearance Thursday, Marquez said that he understood the charges against him and is scheduled for a bail hearing at 2 p.m. Monday. Marquez told investigators that hebegan distancing himself from Farook sometime around 2012 and had no involvement in the attack this month at the Inland Regional Center.
Marquez lived next door to Farook, 28, who introduced him to Islam 10 years ago.
Marquez said he and Farook aborted their plans after authorities interrupted a terror plot in the area in November 2012 that involved four men who wanted to join either the Taliban or al-Qaida fighting US forces overseas. His wife and the wife of Farook’s older brother are sisters. The legal pairing created a family tie between Marquez and Farook – Marquez became a brother-in-law to Farook’s brother, Syed Raheel Farook, and gave Marquez and his friend a common sister-in-law.
If convicted on this charge, Marquez could face a maximum of 15 years behind bars. Obama will stop in San Bernardino on his way to Hawaii, where he will spend the holidays with his family. The call indicates the apparently distraught Marquez was also considering suicide.
“What’s wrong? Why do you feel like you want to kill yourself?”
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Marquez answers that his neighbor did the shooting.
