In a radio broadcast affiliated with the Islamic State, the couple responsible for Wednesday’s mass shooting in San Bernardino were praised as supporters and martyrs.
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Ms. Malik was born in Pakistan and moved to Saudi Arabia before her engagement to Syed Rizwan Farook.
San Bernardino police chief Jarrod Burguan says it appeared the package was from a “reputable vendor” but the centre was cleared and a bomb squad called out of caution. The terrorist group tends to claim a wide range of attacks often with questionable involvement.
After the shooting, Farook, 28, and Malik, 27, fled in a black SUV, police said. The couple died in a shootout with authorities the same day. “But I mean obviously these things were found there, how they got there we don’t know”.
The shooting in San Bernardino is being investigated as an act of terrorism, though there is no evidence yet that the two shooters were part of a broader terrorist cell. “It is possible that this was terrorist related, but we don’t know”, he said yesterday morning.
David Bowdich, assistant director of the FBI’s Los Angeles office, said “a number of pieces of evidence” point to terrorism and that the agency was focused on that idea “for good reason”. Malik’s life before she came to the U.S.is still a mystery, one that could help untangle the still-unknown motive behind the attack.
The post was later removed, apparently by Malik herself, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing law enforcement officials.
Specifics details about her postings were not disclosed by the law enforcement official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because this person was not allowed to discuss an ongoing investigation. He added that he was impressed by the response of local law enforcement.
Farhan Khan, who is married to Farook’s sister, told NBC News that Farook was “a good religious person … just like normal anybody would be”. He said investigators are looking carefully to determine if there is an IS connection.
It also stoked fears that people who are radicalized or supportive of Islamic State could enter the United States alongside refugees from Syria or elsewhere. Malik, who held a Pakistani passport, came to the USA on a K-1, or “fiance”, visa that she obtained in Pakistan, said Mark Toner, a State Department spokesman. His communications would have marked him for inclusion on the list of Americans with known terrorist contacts – not just the wider circle of suspects, but the short list of activists placed under 24/7 watch as a preventive measure.
Police are scouring through social media accounts and the phones and computers the duo left behind.
Those who attended mosque with her husband, Syed Farook, say they know almost nothing about her. Even Farook’s mother, who lived with the couple and their six-month-old daughter, knows little, according to lawyers for Farook’s family.
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“None of the family members had any knowledge that this was going to take place”, Abuershaid said.
