Mother warned police son was missing, suicidal before deadly San Diego mosque shooting

Key Points:

• FBI and San Diego police revealed that the two teenage suspects in the Islamic Center shooting, aged 17 and 18, were radicalized online and met in person before the attack; one suspect’s mother had warned police that her son was suicidal and armed prior to the incident.
• The mosque had conducted active shooter lockdown drills, which, along with the quick actions of security guard Ameen Abdullah, helped protect approximately 140 children inside by preventing the attackers from reaching classrooms.
• Security guard Ameen Abdullah, along with two other men, were killed during the shooting; authorities credit Abdullah’s heroic actions with limiting casualties and saving many lives.
• The suspects, identified as Cain Clark and Caleb Velasquez, died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds near the mosque; police are investigating the shooting as a potential hate crime due to evidence of generalized hate rhetoric.
• Eyewitness accounts from children inside the mosque describe fear and trauma during the shooting, but all students were unharmed; the community remembers the victims for their courage and dedication.