Shooter Turned Depression Into 'Heinous Act': Family

Still no motive, no arrests in Chattanooga shooting
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jul 19, 2015 10:54 AM CDT
Shooter Turned Depression Into 'Heinous Act': Family
Daly Simmons, 26, sits as she prays in front of a makeshift memorial outside the Armed Forces Career Center Saturday, July 18, 2015, in Chattanooga, Tenn. Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez, of Hixson, Tenn., attacked two military facilities on Thursday, in a shooting rampage that killed four Marines and...   (Mark Zaleski)

"The person who committed this horrible crime was not the son we knew and loved," said the family of Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez, the man who killed four Marines and a sailor in Chattanooga, in a statement. "For many years, our son suffered from depression. It grieves us beyond belief to know that his pain found its expression in this heinous act of violence. We understand there are many legitimate questions that need to be answered. Having said this, now is the time to reflect on the victims and their families, and we feel it would be inappropriate to say anything more other than that we are truly sorry for their loss." The family added that they are cooperating with the investigation.

As FBI agents served a warrant on the Abdulazeez home Thursday, two women wearing Islamic head coverings were seen being led away in handcuffs. But FBI agent Jason Pack said yesterday no arrests have been made. A law enforcement official said FBI agents were continuing to interview people today and to reach out to a broader circle of acquaintances. Investigators remained especially interested in Abdulazeez's trip to Jordan last year. The president of the Islamic Society of Greater Chattanooga said Abdulazeez's father told him he felt blindsided and did not see any recent changes in his son. "He told me that he had never seen it coming, and did not see any signs from his son that he would be that way and do something like that," Bassam Issa said. (More Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez stories.)

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