Fifteen pipe bombs and thousands of rounds of ammunition were recovered by authorities investigating the husband and wife team who stormed a workplace holiday party in a San Bernardino and opened fire, killing 14 people and injuring 21, officials said Thursday.
Investigators found many of the items during a search of a residence that was rented by the two suspects, 28-year-old Syed R. Farook and 27-year-old Tashfeen Malik, who were both killed in a firefight with police as they fled the home.
Authorities declined to say Thursday whether the shooting spree at the Inland Regional Center was motivated by terrorism, but San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan said the attack had some obvious evidence of pre-planning.
“There appears to be a degree of planning that went into this,” Chief Burguan said. “Nobody just gets upset at a party and goes home and plans an attack like that.”
Between 65 and 75 firearms casings were recovered at the regional center along with three pipe bombs that were conjoined together as one explosive device.
“They sprayed the room with bullets, I don’t know that there was any one person they targeted,” the chief said.
It remained unclear whether a county government holiday party at the Inland Regional Center was the target of the attack, or if the suspects had additional plans.
“We don’t know if this was the intended target or if there was something that triggered him to do this immediately,” said David Bowdich, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office.
Inside the home rented by the couple, officials found 12 explosive devices, additional bomb making materials, and more than 4,500 rounds of ammunition for various firearms.
“This is not your average investigation,” FBI David Bowdich said mentioning the multiple crime scenes, victims and recovered evidence. “It will take time.”
At Thursday’s press conference, officials also released a few new details about the suspects - including that Mr. Farook, a U.S. citizen, had travelled to Pakistan and returned to the U.S. in July 2014. Ms. Malik had come to the U.S. on a visa from Pakistan with him.
• Andrea Noble can be reached at anoble@washingtontimes.com.
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