FBI Following Up All Leads in Chattanooga
by Sharon Behn July 17, 2015
The FBI and other law enforcement have investigated 70 leads so far as they follow up on the shooting rampage in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
At a press conference in Chattanooga Friday, FBI special agent in charge Ed Reinhold said it is 'premature to speculate' about why gunman Mohammad Youssuf Abdulazeez killed four Marines and wounded several other people at two military centers Thursday.
Reinhold said the FBI has not yet determined if the shootout was an act of terrorism but it is being investigated as terrorism which allows for a higher level and more intense investigation.
Reinhold refused to discuss details of the investigation but said Americans 'may see or hear about FBI activity in other parts of the nation' as it progresses.
Reinhold said that Abdulazeez had at least two long guns (rifle or shotgun) and one handgun in his possession. 'Some weapons may have been purchased legally,' he said. 'Some may not have been.'
Reinhold added that Abdulazeez was known to have traveled outside the U.S. but did not elaborate.
The victims
The four Marines killed in the Chattanooga shooting rampage were medal winners and veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Marine Corps said Friday.
--Gunnery Sgt. Thomas J. Sullivan of Hampden, Massachusetts, was deployed twice during the Iraq War and had received two Purple Hearts.
--Staff Sgt. David A. Wyatt of Burke, North Carolina, served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and currently lived in Hixon, Tennessee, outside Chattanooga. Hixon was also the home of Abdulazeez.
--Sgt. Carson A. Holmquist of Polk, Wisconsin, had been deployed to Afghanistan.
--Lance Cpl. Squire K. ``Skip'' Wells of Cobb County, Georgia, was the youngest victim at 21 and had been a Marine for only a little more than a year.
Shooting details
Authorities say the gunman initially opened fire in a drive-by shooting at a military recruiting center at a shopping mall where five branches of the military have adjoining offices. The U.S. Defense Department says 25 to 30 shots were fired and one Marine Corps recruiter suffered a leg wound. He was treated at a local hospital and released.
The gunman next drove about 10 kilometers to the Navy Operational Support Center (NOSC) where witnesses say he unleashed a barrage of gunfire. The four Marines were killed at that center, and a sailor was seriously wounded.
Police Chief Fred Fletcher said Friday his police force responded with a 'breathtaking example of everyday courage' after reports of shooting at the first location came in. Police caught up with the suspect at the second location and engaged the gunman.
When police officer Dennis Pedigo was hit, Fletcher said his fellow officers grabbed him and dragged him 'out from under the gunfire' at great personal risk. Pedigo is still undergoing treatment at a local hospital.
Fletcher said, he had no doubt, that his police officers, who killed the suspect, 'prevented loss of life yesterday.' He said that off duty police officers, who heard about the shooting, threw on their uniforms and came out to help their fellow officers.
The suspect
Born in Kuwait, 24-year-old Abdulazeez was a naturalized U.S. citizen. He was a high school wrestler with a degree in engineering from the University of Tennessee in Chattanooga.
The SITE Intelligence group reports that Abdulazeez wrote a blog and on Monday he said that 'life is short and bitter.' He added, according to SITE, that Muslims should not miss 'the opportunity to submit to Allah.'
Last April, local police stopped Abdulazeez for erratic driving and for speeding, according to court documents. He was charged with driving under the influence.
But a woman who attended Red Bank High School with Abdulazeez told the Chattanooga Times Free Press that he was a quiet kid and well-liked.
'He was friendly, funny, kind,' Kagan Wagner told the newspaper. 'I never would have thought it would be him. 'They were your average Chattanooga family,' she added.
The New York Times is reporting that Abdulazeez's father was under investigation several years ago for possible ties to a foreign terrorist organization.
Easy access
General Ray Odierno, Army chief of staff has told reporters in a roundtable Friday that the Army is reviewing security at military recruiting centers. He said it was too soon to say whether the facilities need security guards or other protection, and he warned that arming troops in those offices could cause more problems than it might solve.
Thursday, Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren told reporters the gunman would have had no trouble gaining access to the military facilities.
'We have our recruiting centers set up in places easily accessible to the public; for example, a strip mall. So security there is not like we would see at a Fort Bragg or at a Norfolk Naval Air Station or at Quantico (Virginia). So this is something that we have to face.' He added, 'This is because we have to be in contact with the American public.'
The Navy Operational Support Center is used by Navy and Marine Corps personnel, and is often referred to as a 'reserve center.' 'The NOSC Chattanooga mission is to provide training and readiness support for our reserve component personnel to enable them to support the needs of the Navy and Marine Corps team,' a Defense Department statement read.
VOA's Carla Babb contributed to this report from the Pentagon; Sam Verma contributed from Washington
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