Texas outlet mall shooting: What we know about the shooter now

Eight Dead After Shooting At Outlet Mall In Texas ALLEN, TEXAS - MAY 07: Brooklyn Deese (L) hugs Alexa Keith as they visit a memorial next to the Allen Premium Outlets on May 7, 2023 in Allen, Texas. The memorial is for the victims of the mass shooting in the Allen Premium Outlets mall on May 6th. According to reports, a shooter opened fire at the outlet mall, killing eight people. The gunman was then killed by an Allen Police officer that was responding to an unrelated call. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images /Getty Images)

By Debbie Lord, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

Law enforcement officials in Texas are trying to determine if a man who shot and killed eight people at a suburban Dallas mall on Saturday had ties to white supremacist groups, according to The Associated Press.

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The suspect who opened fire at a mall in Allen, Texas, was identified as Mauricio Garcia, 33, of Dallas.

Authorities are looking into whether Garcia, who killed eight people and injured at least seven others, has ties to white supremacist or neo-Nazi organizations or if he espoused their views, the AP and CNN reported Sunday.

According to law enforcement authorities, a preliminary review of Garcia’s social media accounts reveal posts that include racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist rhetoric, Rolling Stone reported.

Federal authorities are reportedly investigating the shooting as an act of domestic terrorism, according to ABC News.

Garcia was killed when a police officer who had been called to the mall for another matter confronted him as he was firing at shoppers on Saturday. Garcia was dressed in black and had on a tactical vest with a patch on his chest that read “RWDS,” an acronym for the phrase “Right Wing Death Squad.”

The acronym is one worn by right-wing extremists and white supremacy groups, according to the AP.

Here’s what else we know about the shooter:

  • He lived with his parents in Dallas prior to moving to a hotel in the days before the shooting.
  • He was armed with an “AR-15 style assault weapon,” President Joe Biden said.
  • He also had a handgun, a senior law enforcement official said.
  • More weapons and ammunition were found in his car.
  • According to the Wall Street Journal, investigators recovered more firearms from the hotel room where Garcia had been living prior to the shooting.
  • He is believed to have acted alone, police said.
  • Garcia had served in the U.S. Army in 2009 but was discharged over “mental health concerns,” according to WFAA. Military officials told the Army Times that he served three months and did not complete his initial entry training.
  • Garcia worked as a private security guard from 2016 to 2020 and completed his firearm proficiency training in 2018, according to the Daily Beast. The website cited Texas Department of Public Safety data.
  • His victims were between the ages of 5 and 61. Six of the injured victims are still in hospital, three of whom are in critical condition, NBC News reported.