Authorities have released information on items seized in the wake of Saturday’s deadly mass shooting at Allen Premium Outlets in Allen, Texas.
Surveillance video shows a lone gunman dressed in black tactical gear firing approximately 40 rounds from an AR-15 rifle in front of the H&M clothing store.
Authorities identified the killer as Mauricio Garcia — he killed eight people and wounded seven others. An off-duty police officer, who happened to be at the mall at the time, used lethal force to stop the gunman.
Officials searching the killer’s vehicle recovered three boxes of ammo, a tactical vest, handcuffs, a sheathed knife, nine bullets in a “critical defense box” and several weapons.
According to local news affiliate WFAA, the 33-year-old shooter lived with his parents but was staying at the Budget Suites of America on North Stemmons Freeway in Dallas for days leading up to the attack.
Reportedly, officers also found a “trove of evidence” linking him to the crime when searching Garcia’s hotel room.
According to court records, officials seized two black hats, one with “Killin It” on it and the other with “Security,” several micro CD cards and a micro S.D. adapter, receipts from the Carolina Caliber firearms company and tactical gear.
Garcia, who appears to have ties to white supremacist groups and violent gangs, reportedly worked as a security officer. The shooter likely had mental health issues.
Fox News reported that Garcia recorded an odd voicemail message before the shooting.
His phone message notes: “If you are my financial aid institution, you didn’t lend me enough money; if you are a friend, you owe me money. And if you are a female, don’t worry; I have plenty of money.”
According to ABC, the U.S. Army discharged Garcia in 2008 “due to mental health concerns.”
U.S. Army spokeswoman Heather Hagan said in a statement: “Mauricio Garcia entered the regular Army in June 2008. He was terminated three months later without completing initial entry training. He was not awarded a military occupational specialty. He had no deployments or awards. We do not provide characterization of discharge for any soldier.”
Attorney Bradford Glendening, formerly with the Army Judge Advocate General Corps, told the New York Post: “This is a common discharge for recruits who can’t adapt to military life.”
Glendening added: “Soldiers who are discharged without completing Initial Entry Training receive uncharacterized discharges. Uncharacterized discharges are just what they sound like — they’re neither favorable, nor unfavorable. No benefits are earned, nor any lost, with an uncharacterized discharge.”
NBC reported that Garcia planned his attack on the Allen Premium Outlets for weeks, sharing many photos of the mall on extremist forums and writing that he intended to strike when he could inflict the most harm.
Posting on the Russian social platform OK.RU and 4chan, Garcia noted his intent to target Jewish people, women and minorities.
Garcia reportedly once shared concerns regarding his mental health with a military commander and recently wrote that no psychologist could cure him or allay his fears regarding what his family “would say about him” after the shooting.
Scroll down to leave a comment and share your thoughts.
