The man accused of killing eight people and injuring seven others at an outlet mall in Allen, Texas, over the weekend was armed with eight weapons, all of which were obtained legally, a state official said Tuesday.
Mauricio Garcia, 33, had three weapons on him and five more in his car, said Hank Sibley, the regional administrator for the Texas Department of Public Safety, at a press conference.
“The big question that we’re dealing with right now is what’s his motive? Why did he do this?” Sibley added. “Well, the big question is we don’t know. That’s what the investigation is trying to find out.”
He confirmed Garcia had “neo-Nazi ideation,” noting he “had patches, tattoos, even his signature verified that.”
A law enforcement official had told The Associated Press social media accounts and posts believed to belong to Garcia indicated an interest in white supremacist and neo-Nazi views. Garcia also reportedly was wearing a patch with an acronym for “Right Wing Death Squad,” a phrase popular with right-wing extremist groups.
However, Sibley noted the alleged shooter appeared to have “targeted the location, rather than a specific group of people.”
“He was very random in the people he killed,” Sibley said. “It didn’t matter the age, same with race or sex. He just shot people, which is horrific in itself.”
Three children were among the eight victims of Saturday’s shooting, including two elementary-age sisters and a 3-year-old boy and both his parents.
Garcia was killed shortly after the rampage began by a police officer who had been responding to a separate call at the Allen Premium Outlets.