Both California shooters ‘radicalized for quite some time’

Investigators with the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Monday questioned Enrique Marquez Jr., the man who originally purchased the two “assault-style” rifles used in last week’s San Bernardino, California shooting in which 14 people were killed, according to law enforcement officials briefed on the probe.

Farook and Malik left their baby daughter at home on Wednesday before heading to the Inland Regional Centre in San Bernardino east of Los Angeles, where some of Farook’s colleagues had gathered for a year-end party.

USA officials have acknowledged they had no information about the couple before the killing other than routine matters related to Malik’s immigration status in the United States. The pair were killed a few hours later in a shootout with police. “Until we are able to determine and understand this problem and the risky threat it poses, our country can not be the victims of horrendous attacks by people that believe only in Jihad”, he said.

“I’m trying to use it as a teaching thing for myself and for my children that terrible things happen, but it doesn’t mean that everybody is a disgusting person”, said Eric Abrams, of San Bernardino.

A neighbor who witnessed the search told NBC News that Marquez and Farook had been close friends since childhood but appeared to have grown more distant in recent months.

Donald Trump has also pointed the finger at the family, saying he didn’t believe Farook’s sister when she said she knew nothing of his plans. “Maybe there’s not a by whom; oftentimes it’s on the Internet”.

President Barack Obama delivered a prime-time address Sunday night, telling the nation the attack was an “act of terrorism created to kill innocent people”. Many parishioners said they would reach deep into their faith to find some way to forgive.

“Our hearts are heavy during this time, yet we must move forward”, James Ramos, chairman of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, said at a news conference Monday.

Family members have said they had not seen any evidence the U.S.-born Farook, nor his Pakistani wife, had been “radicalized”.

Malik reportedly praised the so-called Islamic State on Facebook on the day of the attacks.

Federal investigators are learning more about the couple who carried out last week’s deadly massacre in San Bernardino, California.

The US official said there is no clear evidence that Malik was radicalised overseas, or that she had radicalised her husband.

The only exception is the Division of Environmental Health Services, where work will be suspended for at least another week, county officials said at a news conference. He said investigators were also looking at where they got the money to acquire the guns.

One of the rifles, the Smith & Wesson M&P15, was converted to fire in fully automatic mode, and the DPMS Model A-15 was modified to take large-capacity magazines, she said.

The school has no established links to extremists but some experts say the school is known for harboring fundamentalist, anti-Western views.

Hashmi says the Al-Huda International Welfare Foundation denounces extremism, violence and acts of terrorism and can not be held responsible “for personal acts of any of our students”.