Investigators discovered shocking hate speech scrawled on one of the firearms used by teen gunmen accused of carrying out a deadly attack on a San Diego mosque.
Officials briefed on the investigation said they also found other anti-Islamic and racial pride writings inside their car, according to The New York Times and MS NOW.
Multiple law enforcement officials also told CNN that one of the pair left behind a suicide note containing writings about racial pride. The two male suspects were found dead inside a car from apparent self-inflicted gunshot wounds after a shooting that killed three other people.
The New York Post and NBC identified the suspected shooters as 17-year-old Cain Clark and 18-year-old Caleb Velasquez, though authorities have not yet publicly confirmed their identities.
In a press conference on Monday, San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl said investigators were treating the shooting as a hate crime.
“There was definitely hate rhetoric involved,” Wahl told reporters. “We’re treating this as a hate crime.”
Wahl said the mother of one suspect contacted police about two hours before the attack after realizing her son had disappeared.
She told officers she believed he was suicidal and said he had taken her vehicle and several firearms before leaving with another teenager wearing camouflage clothing.
Wahl said officers were still speaking with the woman and searching for the pair when reports of an active shooter at the Islamic Center of San Diego came in. He described the scene that followed as “extremely chaotic,” saying between 50 and 100 officers responded.
Three men were killed in the attack, including a security guard whom police credited with preventing a much larger massacre.
“We do believe the security guard was able to help at least minimize the situation to the front area of the mosque,” Wahl said.
“I think it’s fair to say his actions were heroic and undoubtedly he saved lives today.”
Community members later identified the security guard as Amin Abdullah, according to the New York Post. Authorities have not independently confirmed his identity.
Wahl said the gunmen had also targeted a landscaper several blocks from the mosque as they fled. According to the police chief, a bullet may have deflected off the man’s helmet and likely saved him from serious injuries.
In a statement posted on its website, the Islamic Center of San Diego—which serves as both a mosque and school campus—said it would remain closed until further notice.
“This is something we have never expected to take place,” Imam Taha Hassane told reporters on Monday. “But at the same time, the religious intolerance and hate that unfortunately exists in our nation is unprecedented.”
San Diego Police did not immediately respond to The Daily Beast’s request for comment.
