AUSTIN, Texas – No evidence has been found that the gunman who committed a mass shooting along Austin’s Sixth Street on March 1 had been radicalized, according to the FBI.
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What we know:
In an update about the investigation released Thursday, the FBI said that 53-year-old Ndiaga Diagne was not acting on behalf of a foreign terrorist organization when he opened fire outside Buford’s just before 2 a.m. The gunfire killed three people and injured 15 others.
Diagne was killed during a shootout with Austin police who had responded to the scene.
Map of West 6th Street shooting (Austin Police Department)
What they’re saying:
According to the FBI, Diagne’s actions appeared to be related to an escalation in violent behavior that was tied to personal triggers and his grievances with the Iran war.
“The investigation revealed that Diagne admired the recently deceased Iranian leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,” the FBI said. “At the time of the attack Diagne was wearing clothes that included an Iranian flag design t-shirt and a sweatshirt that read: ‘Property of Allah.’”
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Khamenei died in a Feb. 28 airstrike during the early days of the Iran war.
The FBI said, however, that there is no “conclusive evidence to explain Diagne’s motivation” or why he selected Sixth Street for the attack.
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The story details a mass shooting in Austin’s Sixth Street entertainment district that left three dead and 14 wounded, with investigators currently probing the gunman’s potential ties to terrorism.
Dig deeper:
The investigation into the shooting continues, according to the FBI.
Police said 19-year-old Ryder Harrington, 30-year-old Jorge Pederson and 21-year-old Savitha Shan died in the shooting.
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