Four United States Marines were shot and killed on Thursday, July 16 at military facilities in Chatanooga, Tennessee.
Twenty-four year old Mohammad Yousef Abdulazeez was identified as the shooter. Abdulazeez was killed as he sought to escape the scene of the crime.
The incident occurred without warning.
Abdulazeez drove his convertible car to a military recruiting center and at 10:45 a.m. local time, fired more than a dozen rounds into the building.
After the shooting, the perpetrator led responding police officers on a high speed chase to a second military site, when he again opened fire. He was killed after the ensuing gun battle which lasted approximately 20 minutes, according to the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
Five people were killed, including the shooter, and three more were wounded during Thursday’s attacks. One of the Marines killed was reportedly a decorated war hero with two Purple Hearts.
The victims were part of an artillery reserve unit.
Bill Killian, the U.S. Attorney for the region, said he would classify the incident as an “act of domestic terrorism.”
President Barack Obama called the incident “a heartbreaking circumstance for these individuals who served our country with great valor to be killed in this fashion.” He pledged a prompt and thorough investigation.
The Times Free Press reported that Abdulazeez is from Hixson, Tennessee, just a few miles from Chattanooga. He was a naturalized American citizen, born in Kuwait.
A Tennessean who said he was a year behind Abdulazeez in high school described the shooter’s family as “very religious.” The woman, according to this witness, wore traditional head coverings.
According to local news reports, Abdulazeez’s high school yearbook quote was: “My name causes national security alerts. What does yours do?” He graduated from a local college with a degree in engineering and was involved in martial arts.