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A erstwhile Army National Guard subordinate who had spent 8 years successful situation for attempting to assistance the Islamic State opened occurrence connected a schoolroom astatine Virginia's Old Dominion University connected Thursday earlier ROTC students subdued and killed him, authorities said.
He had yelled “Allahu Akbar” earlier the shooting, which near 1 idiosyncratic dormant and 2 wounded, according to the FBI.
Dominique Evans, peculiar cause successful complaint of the FBI’s Norfolk tract office, said astatine a quality league that the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps students showed “extreme bravery and courage” and prevented further nonaccomplishment of beingness by stopping the gunman, Mohamed Bailor Jalloh.
The students subdued him and “rendered him nary longer alive,” Evans said. “I don’t cognize however other to accidental it.” She confirmed Jalloh wasn’t changeable but didn’t supply further details.
The field shooting is being investigated arsenic an enactment of terrorism, FBI Director Kash Patel said connected societal media.
Background connected the gunman
Evans said Jalloh aspired to behaviour a violent onslaught similar the 2009 killings astatine Fort Hood.
Jalloh had pleaded blameworthy successful 2016 to attempting to assistance the Islamic State and was sentenced to 11 years successful prison.
He was connected supervised release, which is comparable to probation, erstwhile helium carried retired the onslaught connected Thursday. It wasn't instantly wide wherefore his merchandise from situation had been moved up. Inmates tin get clip disconnected of their sentences for a assortment of reasons, but it isn’t known if that happened successful this case.
Ashraf Nubani, a Virginia lawyer who represented Jalloh successful his 2016 transgression case, said successful a connection that he'd had nary caller interaction with Jalloh and had nary accusation astir Thursday's events. "Any nonaccomplishment of beingness is tragic, and unit against guiltless radical is wholly contrary to Islamic teachings and basal quality morality,” Nubani added.
Jalloh’s sister, Fatmatu Jalloh of Sterling, Virginia, said Thursday she knew thing astir the attack. She said she past saw her member 2 days earlier.
“I person nary thought what is going on,” she said. “I cognize nothing. I don’t adjacent cognize who to call.”
Shooter confirmed dormant wrong 10 minutes of call
Old Dominion University Police Chief Garrett Shelton said little than 10 minutes passed betwixt erstwhile officers were called astir a shooting successful the university’s concern schoolhouse gathering and erstwhile responders determined the shooter was dead.
Shelton said authorities hadn’t yet afloat determined the shooter’s origin of death. He did not corroborate whether immoderate officers fired a weapon.
Lt. Col. Jimmy Delongchamp, nationalist accusation serviceman for the U.S. Army Cadet Command astatine Fort Knox, Kentucky, told The Associated Press that 2 of the radical who were changeable were portion of the Army ROTC astatine ODU.
ROTC is simply a programme wherever students person a assistance to be assemblage portion grooming to go commissioned officers successful the U.S. military. They are committed to service arsenic an serviceman for a play of clip aft they graduate.
Voorhees University successful South Carolina confirmed the unfortunate who died was Lt. Col. Brandon Shah, the son-in-law of a Voorhees trustee.
Shah attended ODU arsenic an ROTC student, according to his biography connected the university's website, and had returned successful 2022 arsenic a person for the program. In the Army, Shah had flown helicopters implicit Iraq, Afghanistan and Eastern Europe arsenic a pilot.
Shooter's Guard work and Islamic State ties
Jalloh is simply a naturalized U.S. national from Sierra Leone.
The Virginia Army National Guard confirmed helium served arsenic a specializer from 2009 until 2015, erstwhile helium was honorably discharged.
According to a 2016 FBI affidavit filed successful his transgression case, Jalloh told a authorities informant helium discontinue the National Guard aft proceeding lectures from extremist cleric Anwar al-Awlaki.
A tribunal affidavit recounts a three-month sting cognition successful which Jalloh, past 26, said helium was reasoning astir carrying retired an onslaught akin to the 2009 shootings astatine Fort Hood, which near 13 radical dead. Authorities launched the 2016 cognition aft Jalloh made interaction with Islamic State members successful Africa earlier that year.
Jalloh aboriginal told the informant that the Islamic State radical had asked if helium wanted to enactment successful an attack. He tried to donate $500 to the Islamic State, but the wealth really went to an relationship controlled by the FBI, according to tribunal documents.
Jalloh past tried to bargain an AR-15 battle firearm from a Virginia weapon store but was turned distant due to the fact that helium lacked the due paperwork. He returned the adjacent time and bought a antithetic battle firearm that was rendered inoperable earlier helium near the store, prosecutors said. He was arrested the pursuing day.
The Justice Department successful 2017 requested a 20-year situation condemnation for Jalloh, noting that helium had attempted to get a weapon to transportation retired a execution crippled successful the United States. Jalloh’s lawyers requested a 6½-year situation condemnation and placement successful a installation with residential cause maltreatment treatment.
“By putting the thought of this execution crippled into spiritual terms, and by suggesting that murdering members of the US subject would beryllium a way to heaven, the suspect showed however powerfully committed helium was to the deadly ideology of the Islamic State,” prosecutors wrote successful a sentencing memorandum.
U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady, an appointee of erstwhile President George W. Bush, sentenced him alternatively to 11 years successful situation with recognition for clip served and 5 years of supervised release. He besides ordered Jalloh to enactment successful programs for substance maltreatment and intelligence wellness treatment. Based connected his merchandise date, helium would person been nether supervised merchandise until 2029.
Inmates convicted of terrorism-related offenses are not eligible to trim their sentences for bully behaviour oregon information successful a residential cause maltreatment attraction program.
In a missive to O’Grady anterior to his sentencing, Jalloh wrote that helium started utilizing drugs aft his woman ended their six-year relationship.
“I consciousness heavy regret successful having been driven by my emotions alternatively than my intellect and becoming progressive with specified an evil organization," helium said. "I cull and deplore coercion and immoderate groups associated with it, particularly ISIL.”
People wounded successful the shooting
One of the radical who was hospitalized aft the shooting is successful captious information Thursday, according to Sentara Health. The different had been treated and released.
The nationalist assemblage successful Norfolk canceled classes and suspended operations connected its main field done Friday.
In a connection to the assemblage community, ODU President Brian Hemphill expressed gratitude for the swift exigency effect and extended his thoughts and prayers to those impacted.
The schoolhouse successful coastal Norfolk has astir 24,000 students and says astir 30% of its students are military-affiliated. The country is besides location to Naval Station Norfolk, the largest naval presumption successful the world.
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This communicative has been updated to close the spelling of Fatmatu Jalloh’s surname.
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Associated Press journalists Michael R. Sisak successful New York City, Allen G. Breed successful Wake Forest, North Carolina, Alanna Durkin Richer and Eric Tucker successful Washington, D.C., Adrian Sainz successful Memphis, Tennessee, and Jaimie Ding successful Los Angeles contributed to this report.
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.
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