The husband and wife who carried out the San Bernardino, California, shooting spree participated in target practice with firearms multiple times, including at least one time within days of Wednesday’s massacre, according to the FBI.
David Bowdich, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles office, provided some additional details about the Muslim couple in a briefing Monday, adding that “both subjects were radicalized and have been for some time.”
Wednesday’s mass shooting, which killed 14 and injured 21, has been classified as a terrorist act but officials are still working to piece together a comprehensive picture of the two deceased suspects’ lives as they continue to sift through their communications to understand their motivations in carrying out the attack.
FBI Director James Comey said last week that U.S. citizen Syed Rizwan Farook and his Pakistan-born wife Tashfeen Malik had done nothing ahead of the mass shooting that had raised their profile enough to have put them on the FBI’s radar.
Mr. Bowdich added Monday that the couple had participated in target practice in the Los Angeles area, but declined to say where or exactly when.
Investigators recovered five firearms from the couple, including two 9mm pistols and a .22 caliber rifle that Farook purchased and two additional rifles that were purchased by another man. Officials have determined that all of the firearms were purchased through federal firearms licensees in California between 2007 and 2012.
• Andrea Noble can be reached at anoble@washingtontimes.com.
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