Authorities are investigating anti-Semitic social media posts possibly made by the suspect in Saturday morning’s attack at a Jewish synagogue that killed 11 people, a law enforcement source tells PEOPLE.
Authorities confirmed at a Saturday press conference the suspect is Robert Bowers, a Pittsburgh resident whose age authorities have not released and who was not previously known to police.
The suspect was taken to the hospital with gunshot wounds after surrendering to police, authorities said, adding that there is no continued threat to the public.
Police sources told KDKA the shooter yelled, “All Jews must die” after entering the Tree of Life synagogue in the Squirrel Hill section of the city during the Saturday morning Shabbat service. President Donald Trump condemned the attack as anti-Semitic violence and authorities announced it is being investigated as a hate crime.
According to the source, investigators are looking at an account on the social media site Gab in which a user who is possibly the shooter writes, “Jews are the children of Satan.” In another post, the user reacts to the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, a Jewish organization that works with refugees.
“He accused of bringing in hostile invaders to live in the U.S.,” the source says.
“Something touched him off this morning,” the source says, citing a post on the Gab account that read, “I can’t sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics. I’m going in.”
Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Wendell Hissrich announced at a press conference that authorities received a call about an active shooter at 9:54 a.m.
Bob Jones, the FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge, said authorities believe the suspect acted alone and they believed he used an assault rifle in the rampage. He said the suspects had three handguns on him.
He said the suspect spent about 20 minutes inside the synagogue and was leaving when an officer engaged him. That officer was subsequently wounded, after which the suspect went back inside the synagogue to hide from SWAT officers, Jones said.
Jones said, “This is the most horrific crime scene I have seen in 22 years at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Members of the Tree of Life Synagogue — a place of worship — were brutally murdered by a gunman simply because of their faith.”
Six people were also injured in the shooting, including four SWAT officers who responded to the scene.
No children were killed in the shooting, authorities announced.
In response to the shooting, HIAS issued a statement saying, “There are no words to express how devastated we are by the events in Pittsburgh this morning. This loss is our loss, and our thoughts are with Tree of Life Congregation, our local partner Jewish Family and Community Services (JFCS) of Pittsburgh, the city of Pittsburgh and all those affected by this senseless act of violence. As we try to process this horrifying tragedy, we pray that the American Jewish community and the country can find healing.”
from PEOPLE.com https://ift.tt/2PrJw5B
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