Federal prosecutors plan to file charges against Enrique Marquez, a friend and neighbor of the couple who carried out the massacre in San Bernardino, Calif., earlier this month, according to law enforcement officials.
The Justice Department could make the charges public as early as Thursday. It would be the first time anyone has been charged in connection with the shooting on Dec. 2, which left 14 people dead.
Mr. Marquez, who converted to Islam several years ago, bought the two assault rifles that Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, used in the shooting, according to law enforcement officials. They said Mr. Marquez has told investigators that he bought the guns for Mr. Farook, who believed he could not pass the required background check.
Mr. Marquez has also told investigators that he and Mr. Farook, friends since childhood, planned a terrorist attack in 2012, but called it off after the authorities arrested some other men who were plotting to kill Americans.
Much of what federal authorities know about the couple has come from Mr. Marquez, who officials say has been cooperating with investigators for several days.
Ms. Malik and Mr. Farook, armed with the assault rifles and semiautomatic pistols, fired on a meeting and holiday luncheon for Mr. Farook’s co-workers at San Bernardino County’s public health department on Dec. 2, killing 14 and injuring 21. They also left behind a bomb that failed to detonate. Hours later, they were killed in a shootout with the police. They fired as many as 150 shots that day, and in their home and in the sport utility vehicle they were driving, the police found another rifle, thousands of rounds of ammunitions, a dozen pipe bombs, and equipment for making more bombs.
Shortly after the shooting, a cryptic message was posted to Mr. Marquez’s Facebook page: “I’m. Very sorry guys. It was a pleasure.”
Mr. Marquez, 24, worked as a security guard at a Walmart, and also did odd jobs at a bar in Riverside. Co-workers at the bar said he drank alcohol — forbidden in Islam — and talked about terrorist “sleeper cells” ready to carry out attacks, but they did not take the talk seriously.
He entered into what friends described as a sham marriage, paid to wed a Russian woman so that she could gain entry to the United States. Officials said the woman’s sister is married to Mr. Farook’s brother.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/18/u...column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news
The Justice Department could make the charges public as early as Thursday. It would be the first time anyone has been charged in connection with the shooting on Dec. 2, which left 14 people dead.
Mr. Marquez, who converted to Islam several years ago, bought the two assault rifles that Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, used in the shooting, according to law enforcement officials. They said Mr. Marquez has told investigators that he bought the guns for Mr. Farook, who believed he could not pass the required background check.
Mr. Marquez has also told investigators that he and Mr. Farook, friends since childhood, planned a terrorist attack in 2012, but called it off after the authorities arrested some other men who were plotting to kill Americans.
Much of what federal authorities know about the couple has come from Mr. Marquez, who officials say has been cooperating with investigators for several days.
Ms. Malik and Mr. Farook, armed with the assault rifles and semiautomatic pistols, fired on a meeting and holiday luncheon for Mr. Farook’s co-workers at San Bernardino County’s public health department on Dec. 2, killing 14 and injuring 21. They also left behind a bomb that failed to detonate. Hours later, they were killed in a shootout with the police. They fired as many as 150 shots that day, and in their home and in the sport utility vehicle they were driving, the police found another rifle, thousands of rounds of ammunitions, a dozen pipe bombs, and equipment for making more bombs.
Shortly after the shooting, a cryptic message was posted to Mr. Marquez’s Facebook page: “I’m. Very sorry guys. It was a pleasure.”
Mr. Marquez, 24, worked as a security guard at a Walmart, and also did odd jobs at a bar in Riverside. Co-workers at the bar said he drank alcohol — forbidden in Islam — and talked about terrorist “sleeper cells” ready to carry out attacks, but they did not take the talk seriously.
He entered into what friends described as a sham marriage, paid to wed a Russian woman so that she could gain entry to the United States. Officials said the woman’s sister is married to Mr. Farook’s brother.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/18/u...column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news
