Authorities have identified the two alleged shooters linked to the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California on Wednesday. Fourteen people were killed and another 17 were injured at a civil services center there that offers assistance to the disabled.
The shooting took place at the Inland Regional Center, which was holding a holiday party, and authorities were first called to respond at 10:59 a.m. After the shooting, the gunmen fled the scene in a black SUV, but were later tracked down by police. After an exchange of gunfire, the two were killed by authorities.
According to the Los Angeles Times, San Bernardino police chief Jarrod Burguan confirmed Wednesday night that the people killed were a man, Syed Rizwan Farook, 28; and a woman, Tashfeen Malik, 27.
Police said that Farook was an American citizen, but did not give details of Malik’s citizenship. They could say that they are “reasonably confident” that the two were married or engaged.
While Burguan has said that Malik and Farook were the only shooters, there was a third suspect seen fleeing the scene, reports The San Bernardino Sun. It’s not clear how this third person was linked to the shooting, but the person was detained.
It appears that the couple was planning something because they were dressed in assault-style clothing and carried long rifles, according to Burguan. However, police have said that Farook, an environmental health specialist for San Bernardino County, attended the party and left in anger.
“There had to be some degree of planning that went into this,” Burguan said Wednesday.
FBI assistant director David Bowdich has said that they are still not ruling out terrorism.
President Barack Obama was briefed on the shooting. He was being interviewed by CBS News as the shooting was first reported. Once again, Obama noted that incidents like these rarely happen anywhere else in the world.
“Obviously, our hearts go out to the victims and the families,” Obama said. "The one thing we do know is that we have a pattern now of mass shootings in this country that has no parallel anywhere else in the world.”