Suspect in Texas shooting wore 'Property of Allah' clothing and Iranian flag emblem, AP source says
The gunman who killed 2 people at a bar in Texas early Sunday in a mass shooting that left 14 others wounded was wearing a sweatshirt that said “Property of Allah,” and another shirt with an Iranian flag design, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press.
The shooter has been identified as 53-year-old Ndiaga Diagne, the law enforcement official and another person familiar with the matter said. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation.
Diagne is originally from Senegal, according to multiple people briefed on the investigation. One of the people told the AP that Diagne came to the U.S. in 2006 and was a naturalized U.S. citizen.
Officers in Austin shot and killed the gunman, who used both a pistol and a rifle to carry out the attack, police said. The FBI said the shooting was being investigated as a potential act of terrorism.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott hinted that the attack may have been in response to U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran and said he has directed the Texas Military Department to activate service members who will work alongside state and federal partners to "safeguard our communities and critical infrastructure."
"This act of violence will not define us, nor will it shake the resolve of Texans," Abbott said in a statement obtained by Scripps News. "To anyone who thinks about using the current conflict in the Middle East to threaten Texans or our critical infrastructure, understand this clearly: Texas will respond with decisive and overwhelming force to protect our state."
The suspect drove past the bar several times before stopping and shooting a pistol out the window of his SUV at people on a patio and in front of the bar, said Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis.
The gunman then parked the vehicle, got out with a rifle, and began shooting at people walking in the area before officers who rushed to the intersection shot him, Davis said.
There have been at least two other high-profile shootings in Austin’s Sixth Street entertainment district within the past five years, including one in the summer of 2021 that left 14 people wounded. Although this weekend’s shooting doesn’t meet the definition of a mass killing, there have been five of those so far this year.
The FBI is investigating whether the shooting early Sunday was act of terrorism because of “indicators” found on the gunman and in his vehicle, said Alex Doran, the acting agent in charge of the FBI's San Antonio office.
“It’s still too early to make a determination on that,” Doran said.
The shooting happened outside Buford’s Backyard Beer Garden just before 2 a.m. along Sixth Street, a nightlife destination filled with bars and music clubs and only a few miles from the University of Texas.
The school's president said on social media that some of those impacted included “members of our Longhorn family.”
“Our prayers are with the victims and all those impacted,” said university President Jim Davis.
The entertainment district has a heavy police presence on weekends, and officers were able to confront the gunman within a minute of the first call for help, Davis said.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson praised the fast response by police and rescuers.
“They definitely saved lives,” he said.
One of the victims was found in the street between two parked cars. Inside the multi-story bar, there were overturned tables and drinks left behind by fleeing customers.
Another shooting early Sunday at a Cincinnati nightclub and concert venue wounded nine people, police in Ohio said.
All nine had gunshot wounds, but none were non-life threatening, said Adam Hennie, the city’s interim police chief.
