Garland, TX shooting linked to ISIS? by Milan Hamilton

      A day after police killed two gunmen who tried to ambush a Garland, Texas, event featuring controversial cartoons of the Muslim Prophet Mohammed, details began to emerge about the shooters. One suspect, identified as Elton Simpson by a federal law enforcement source, linked himself to ISIS in a tweet posted just before the attack. He also was no stranger to federal investigators. In 2011, he was convicted of making a false statement involving international and domestic terrorism. The other suspect, identified as Nadir Soofi by two federal law enforcement officials, was Simpson's roommate in a Phoenix apartment. Simpson and Soofi never made it inside the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, where in addition to the cartoon contest, a right-wing Dutch politician who's on an al Qaeda hit list was speaking Sunday evening. A traffic officer working after-hours as security for the event and armed only with a service pistol killed both men, who were wearing body armor and carrying assault rifles, Garland Police Department spokesman Joe Harn told reporters Monday. Investigators haven't revealed what they found in the suspects' apartment, but Simpson's social media footprint reveals one possible motive; he linked himself to ISIS in a tweet posted just before the attack. "May Allah accept us as mujahideen," the tweet said, adding that Simpson and his fellow attacker had pledged loyalty to "Amirul Mu'mineen" (the leader of the faithful) -- a description that CNN terrorism analyst Paul Cruickshank said likely refers to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi. After the shooting, an ISIS propagandist that Simpson had earlier asked his readers to follow tweeted, "Allahu Akbar!!!! 2 of our brothers just opened fire" at the Texas event.

      This is so crazy because not only is it another example of how quickly and secretly ISIS works but it also shows you that they can be anywhere at anytime, not just in another country. It doesn't really hit people until these types of things happen in our own town and cities. The terrorism of ISIS is so scary because of how extreme their actions are in order to convey their beliefs. The U.S. must be extra cautious, just as we were immediately after 9/11, or this country could easily experience another tragic, disastrous event that we are probably not ready to handle.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/04/us/garland-mohammed-drawing-contest-shooting/index.html