San Bernardino attacker’s friend arrested

Enrique Marquez, 24, a friend and former neighbour of Syed Rizwan Farook, is due to be charged on Thursday (US time). Farook asked Marquez to purchase the weapons on his behalf because he did not want them traced to him and doubted he could pass a background check, the sources said.

Federal authorities are set to file criminal charges later Thursday against a friend of the couple behind the slaying of 14 people in San Bernardino, California.

Investigators also were exploring whether Farook and Marquez aborted plans to launch an attack in 2012.

The court records included a partial transcript of a 911 call Marquez made in the hours after the San Bernardino shootings.

He was charged in U.S. District Court in Riverside, California, with conspiring with Farook to provide material support – including himself, a firearm and explosives – for crimes of terrorism; making a false statement in connection with acquisition of firearms; and immigration fraud for what authorities said was his sham marriage to a distant relative of Farook’s.

The attack, which left 21 people wounded, has stirred concerns among Americans about national security and the reach of Islamic State, becoming an issue in the US presidential campaign.

On Wednesday, FBI Director James Comey said there is no evidence that the couple posted publicly on social media about their commitment to jihad before Malik arrived in the United States in 2014 on a K-1, or fiancee visa.

The federal prosecutor’s office said: “Marquez was also charged today with the unlawful purchase of two assault rifles used in the deadly shooting two weeks ago”.

“I did not know him and never heard of him until now”, said Arian Ahmad Badal, of Pomona, Calif., the driver.

The nature of the arrest and the charges that he faces were not immediately known.

“Additionally, Marquez and Farook took steps to carry out their plans by purchasing firearms, ammunition, and other tactical gear, as well as going to local firing ranges”. Farook was born in IL and had worked for the San Bernardino County’s public health department as an inspector for five years.

Marquez was introduced to Islam by Farook, and in 2007 converted to Islam, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The drive contained a spreadsheet of expenses from the 2011 to 2012 period, which included guns, ammunition, and trips to firing ranges. Farook’s sister and brother-in-law, Saira and Farhan Khan, have said they hope to adopt their niece.

By 2011, the affidavit claims, “Marquez spent most of his time at Farook’s residence, where he read, listened to lectures and watched videos involving radical Islamic content”. President Barack Obama will visit San Bernardino on Friday to meet privately with the families of the shooting victims.

Although they did not explode, several pipe bombs were used in the San Bernardino attack.

Armida Chacon has said her son is a good person who loved to hang out with friends and go to parties. “She just lived her life and loved and celebrated every day”, family friend Jill Johnson said.