U.S. authorities
are investigating travel to the Middle East by the suspect in the fatal
shootings on four Marines in Tennessee.. including one trip to
Jordan and Yemen.
Mohammod
Youssuf Abdulazeez (24) who the FBI identified as the shooter .. was shot
to death in a rampage on Thursday at two military facilities in
Chattanooga.
The suspect,
seen driving an open-top Ford Mustang, sprayed gunfire at a joint
military recruiting center in a strip mall, riddling the glass facade
with bullet holes, then drove to a Naval Reserve Center about 6 miles
(10 km) away, where he killed the four Marines before he died in a
firefight with police.
The
shooting, which comes at a time when U.S. military and law enforcement
authorities are increasingly concerned about the threat 'lone wolves'
pose to domestic targets, also injured three people, including a sailor
who was critically wounded.
Investigators
are trying to determine whether the suspect had any contact with
militants or militant groups but have no evidence so far that he did,
the U.S. government source told Reuters.
U.S. law enforcement officials said they were investigating whether he was inspired by Islamic State or similar extremists.
Islamic State had threatened to step up violence in the holy fasting month of Ramadan, which ends on Friday evening.
The
group, also known as ISIS and ISIL, claimed responsibility after a
gunman killed 37 tourists in Tunisia in June, the same day as an attack
in France and a suicide bombing in Kuwait.
The SITE Intelligence Group, which
tracks extremist groups, said Abdulazeez blogged on Monday "life is
short and bitter" and that Muslims should not miss an opportunity to
"submit to Allah." Reuters could not independently verify the postings.
While
investigators still have no specific evidence of what might have
prompted the suspect to carry out the shooting, they believe family or
psychological issues may have contributed, according to the source, who
was not authorized to speak on the record.
His
father, Youssuf Abdulazeez, who attended Texas A&M University,
according to his Facebook page, appears to be a high achiever. He works
for Chattanooga's Department of Public Works as a soil engineering
expert, according to local media reports citing city records.
The
suspect appears to have followed in his father's footsteps. According
to a resume believed to have been posted online by Abdulazeez, he
attended high school in a Chattanooga suburb and graduated from the
University of Tennessee in 2012 with an engineering degree. His work
experience includes an internship with the Tennessee Valley Authority, a
regional power utility.
Years
ago, the father came under investigation by a Joint Terrorism Task
Force for possible connections to a militant group, the source said, but
he was cleared of any association with terrorism or wrongdoing. It is
possible but not certain that the probe resulted in the father's name
being placed on a terrorist watch list, according to the source.
