On Friday, Attorney General Drew Wrigley and Fargo Police Chief David Zibolski held a joint press conference. The footage was taken off the body camera of an officer that took part in the July 14 shootout, which resulted in one policeman, the gunman, and two other officers, as well as one civilian, being wounded or killed. This video shows Fargo Police Zach Robinson, who fired at the gunman about 20 yards away with his service gun.
A bodycam video gives us a fresh look at a case that’s been stagnant for some time.
At 2:43 p.m. on Friday, July 14, Fargo police officers responded to a reported auto crash with injuries on 25th Street near Ninth Avenue. Some 24 minutes after the officers arrived, an officer called the dispatcher, saying, “Shots fired, shots fired. Someone with an AK-47 is shooting at us. Shots fired. Shots fired. Three officers down. Three officers down.”
Google Maps’ “find distance” shows that the distance between the third car and the fourth car in a parking lot is about 66 feet.
Watch the body cam video below:
The “Defund the Police” idiots are sure to want to know why the killer didn’t get shot in the leg and why he took at least 10 9mm rounds.
What We Knew About the Gunman?
Mohamed Barakat was the suspect. He is a Syrian refugee of 37 years old who immigrated to America, in 2012.
In 2019, he became a US Citizen.
His criminal record in the US was limited to a speeding fine.
His phone records only show five calls during the week before his death.
He was not on social media and was not affiliated with the Muslim Community of Fargo. I must admit that I was unaware of the existence of such a group.
The Attorney General said Barakat was in the FBI “Guardian” system. This is: “a web-enabled counterterrorism incident management system that supports the FBI’s role in defending the United States and its interests abroad from the threat of terrorism by receiving, assessing, disseminating, and retaining threats, suspicious activities, and events.”
His search history revealed “information about mass shootings, and how to shoot and injure people in specific ways”.
Evidence in his car revealed that the attack on the police officers was an accident and that he had a larger target.
Wrigley reports that investigators found three long rifles and 1,800 rounds of .223 caliber ammunition, a homemade gas grenade, and explosives in Barakat’s car.
Barakat’s explosives contained a large quantity of Tannerite, a compound explosive consisting of ammonium Nitrate (a compound explosive) and aluminum powder. Wrigley said that Barakat could have caused serious destruction if he had shot an explosive.
There were more weapons and ammo at his house and signs that he was not on a suicide mission.
Wrigley said that Barakat may have hoped to return home and survive.
I have an indication that (in this instance )… he hoped to survive by checking to see whether someone had entered his flat during his absence. Wrigley didn’t elaborate on his multiple methods.
I’m not a conspiracy theorist, but this story has a lot that does not make sense.
Barakat drives around Fargo in his car with weapons, ammunition, and improvised explosive devices, looking for a place where he can create a distraction. The distraction was caused by a minor accident.
Barakat was placed on the FBI’s counterterrorism watch list. Why did he get on it and why did he get off?
His lack of communication via phone or the Internet and his estrangement from his religious community seems calculated. It seems strange to me that someone would go through such efforts to become a US citizen but then have no connection with anyone.
I would love to know who made the decision that he was seeking political asylum and what evidence was used.
It would be interesting to know why a small city like Fargo immediately imposed an omerta on the shootings that took place.
The Fargo Police Department issued a warning on social media shortly after the shooting to stay away from the area. The Fargo Police Department called the shooting “a critical event” rather than a shooting.
Fargo Police confirmed the shooting eight hours after the incident. They said an officer and suspect were both killed. A civilian and two officers were also injured.
The spokesperson did not release any new information that was not already available on social media. The spokesperson also refused to take any questions.
North Dakota Highway Patrol has confirmed that they are investigating the accident in order to establish a timeline of events. Capt. Bryan Niewind confirmed that report.
There was no crash report on Monday.
There is little information about the situation and it appears that state and federal officials do not want to fill in any gaps.
This is a video of the press conference. It is cued up to where the body cam starts.
