The couple suspected of killing 14 people at a holiday party in California amassed thousands of rounds of ammunition and a dozen pipe bombs, authorities said on Thursday as they sought clues to the pair’s motives and whether they had links to Islamist militants.
Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, and Tashfeen Malik, 27, his wife and mother of his 6-month-old daughter, were killed in a shootout with police five hours after Wednesday’s massacre at the Inland Regional Center social services agency in the city of San Bernardino.
Twenty-one people were wounded in the shooting, which ranks as the deadliest instance of US gun violence in three years.
Pakistani-Origin
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Farook, a US citizen, was born in Illinois, the son of Pakistani immigrants, according to Hussam Ayloush, who heads the Los Angeles area chapter of the Muslim advocacy group Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). Malik was born in Pakistan and lived in Saudi Arabia until they married in August 2014, Ayloush said.
Their marriage license shows the two wed in Southern California’s Riverside County last year. The license lists the couple’s religion as Muslim and says all four of their parents were born in Pakistan.
Malik entered the US from Pakistan the month before her wedding on a fiancée visa that required she get married within 90 days or leave the country.
Records: Suspect in US Shooting Had Troubled Upbringing
Farook grew up in a family riven by violence, with his mother accusing his father of being an abusive alcoholic, according to divorce records.
Farook’s mother, Rafia Sultana Farook, in 2006 alleged that her husband, also named Syed, attacked her while her children were present, dropped a TV on her and pushed her toward a car, according to the records obtained by The Associated Press.
She filed a no-contact, stay-away domestic violence protection petition on July 3, 2006. Rafia said she was forced to move out of her home with three of her children because her husband continually harassed her “verbally and physically and refused to leave the home,” according to the divorce records.
The details about the younger Farook’s childhood emerged as authorities tried to determine what could have motivated him and his wife to, as police say, open fire at the center in San Bernardino.
Authorities Searching for Rifle Buyer
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A law enforcement official says authorities are looking for a man who bought two rifles used in the attack. Authorities have said two pistols and two rifles that Farook and Malik carried were bought legally more than three years ago. Farook bought the pistols, but a man authorities won’t identify bought the rifles.
It’s not known if the man was acting on Farook’s behalf when he bought the weapons or if they were stolen and then used in the attack. The official says the guns were all purchased in California.
Unspeakable Carnage and “Pure Panic”
The first officer on the scene described seeing unspeakable carnage and “pure panic” on the faces of the injured.
San Bernardino Police Lt. Mike Madden, a 24-year veteran, said at a news conference Thursday night that he and other officers had to pass people who were injured and needed help to try to stop the attack at a social service center.
He described victims moaning and wailing and fire alarms going off in a conference room where the county health department was holding a holiday luncheon. He said the situation was surreal.
Police Chief Jarrod Burguan says most of the people killed and injured were San Bernardino County employees. He says 12 of the 14 killed were county workers and 18 of the 21 injured.
The Victims
San Bernardino County authorities have released the names of the 14 people shot and killed during a health department party.
The victims were from Southern California and ranged in age from 26 to 60. They are:
— Robert Adams, 40, of Yucaipa.
— Isaac Amanios, 60, of Fontana.
— Bennetta Bet-Badal, 46, of Rialto.
— Harry Bowman, 46, of Upland.
— Sierra Clayborn, 27, of Moreno Valley.
— Juan Espinoza, 50, of Highland.
— Aurora Godoy, 26, of San Jacinto.
— Shannon Johnson, 45, of Los Angeles.
— Larry Kaufman, 42, of Rialto.
— Damian Meins, 58, of Riverside.
— Tin Nguyen, 31, of Santa Ana.
— Nicholas Thalasinos, 52, of Colton.
— Yvette Velasco, 27, of Fontana.
— Michael Wetzel, 37, of Lake Arrowhead.
The LA Times has published a touching tribute along with stories of all the victims.
(With agency inputs)
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