Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez -The man who authorities say killed four Marines in an attack on a military recruiting center and another U.S. military site was a 24-year-old, Kuwait-born engineer who had not been on the radar of federal authorities until the bloodshed. Little is known about the man Or what motivated his rampage. Federal authorities were looking into the possibility it was an act of terrorism, but say there is no evidence yet that anyone else was involved — or that the public is in any danger. Officials have said they do not know why the shooter targeted the facilities and have not said what weapons he used.
Even the exact spelling of his first name was not clear: Federal authorities and records gave at least four variations. Residents in the neighborhood where Abdulazeez is believed to have lived said they didn't know him or his family well.
Hussnain Javid, a 21-year-old senior at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, said Abdulazeez studied electrical engineering at the same college. They both graduated from Red Bank High School in Chattanooga several years apart. Javid said Abdulazeez was on the high school's wrestling team and was a popular student.
The Tennessee Valley Authority confirmed Abdulazeez had been an intern at the public utility a few years ago.
"He was very outgoing," Javid said. "Everyone knew of him."
Javid said he occasionally saw Abdulazeez at the Islamic Society of Greater Chattanooga, but the last time was roughly a year ago.
The shootings took place minutes apart, with the gunman stopping his car and spraying dozens of bullets first at a recruiting center for all branches of the military, then driving to a Navy-Marine training center 7 miles away, authorities and witnesses said. The attacks were over within a half-hour.
In addition to the Marines killed, three people were reported wounded, including a sailor who was seriously hurt.
No comments:
Post a Comment