Synagogue Shooting Suspect Linked to Unsolved Mosque Arson

The man accused of carrying out a deadly shooting at a Southern California synagogue on Saturday is now under investigation in connection with an unsolved mosque arson, according to multiple reports.

Authorities say a 19-year-old gunman walked into the Chabad of Poway synagogue Saturday and opened fire with an assault-style rifle, killing one person and wounding three others, including the synagogue's rabbi. The suspect sped away in a car while an off-duty U.S. Border Patrol agent present at the synagogue returned fire, hitting the getaway vehicle.

Police caught up with the suspect after he called 911 to claim responsibility for the attack on the synagogue. The 19-year-old told authorities where he was located along Interstate 15 and a San Diego police officer on their way to the shooting spotted the suspect traveling on the highway and pulled him over. The suspect jumped out of his car and immediately surrendered.

The gunman's rifle was sitting in plain sight on the front passenger seat, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore said at a news conference Saturday.

Police and the FBI are examining the gunman's social media presence, including an alleged manifesto that was posted around the time of the attack, Gore said. The hate-filled letter was posted by someone identifying as the 19-year-old shooter and it details his alleged motivations for the attack. The letter details the shooter's plans for the attack and references other attacks on places of worship, including the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, and the mosque shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand. The letter's author also claims responsibility for a pre-dawn arson attack at an Escondido mosque on March 24, expressing disappointment the attack failed.

No one was hurt in the mosque fire. Gore said authorities were investigating the suspect's "possible involvement" in the attempted arson.

Officials are working to verify the document's authenticity, Gore said.

Poway Mayor Steve Vaus called the attack a hate crime, telling CNN the gunman made hateful statements as he entered the synagogue. He added that the attack could have been much worse had it not been for some of the worshipers who tried to stop the 19-year-old.

"This shooter was engaged by people in the congregation, and those brave people certainly prevented this from being a much worse tragedy," Vaus said. 

The woman who was killed, identified as Lori Kaye, reportedly jumped between the shooter and the rabbi in an effort to protect him, CNN reported. Kaye later died from her wounds at a nearby hospital.

"Poway will stay strong and we will always be a community that cares for one another," Poway Mayor Steve Vaus said at a news conference.

President Donald Trump addressed the shooting before leaving the White House ahead of a rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Saturday night.

"My deepest sympathies go to the people that were affected – the families, the loved ones – by the, obviously – looks right now based on my last conversations – looks like a hate crime," Trump told reporters outside the White House. "Hard to believe, hard to believe." 

The shooting was exactly six months after an attack on a Pittsburgh synagogue that left 11 people dead and several more injured.

Photo: Getty Images


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