Muhammad, Malvo linked to crimes here (TACOMA )

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER ^ | October 29, 2002 | MIKE BARBER, LEWIS KAMB AND CANDACE HECKMAN

[twntaipan]

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/93311_tacoma29.shtml

Muhammad, Malvo linked to crimes here

Police say guns loaned to pair were used in shootings

Tuesday, October 29, 2002

By MIKE BARBER, LEWIS KAMB AND CANDACE HECKMAN
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTERS

TACOMA -- Handguns provided by a friend of two men accused of being the D.C. snipers were used to kill a young mother here in February and to blast a synagogue here in May, authorities said last night.

The guns were loaned to John Allen Muhammad by an acquaintance who allowed the former Fort Lewis soldier and his young companion, Lee Boyd Malvo, to stay at his home, authorities said.

Accusations of a link between the two and the Tacoma crimes came as federal agents were still sifting through sales records at a Tacoma gun shop where Muhammad is thought to have obtained a rifle used in at least 11 of the 13 sniper incidents in and around Washington, D.C., in the past three weeks.

Officials in Louisiana, meanwhile, have requested DNA samples from Muhammad and Malvo to check for a connection to a series of killings in the Baton Rouge area, the Baltimore Sun reported last night.

Muhammad, 41, a former Tacoma resident, and Malvo, a 17-year-old Jamaican he called his stepson, have been charged in connection with eight of the Washington-area shootings, and have been charged with murder in a Sept. 21 robbery-homicide in Alabama.

Federal officials yesterday confirmed that Malvo is legally known as Lee Boyd Malvo, but had informally adopted the first name of his partner. Authorities are still unsure about his age, saying he may be 19.

The two were arrested last week as they slept in their car at a Maryland rest stop only hours after federal agents searched a home they frequented in Tacoma and took records from the Bellingham high school Malvo briefly attended.

"The investigation continues at a high level despite the recent arrests of John A. Muhammad and Lee Malvo," said Tacoma police Chief David Brame, speaking at a news conference last night along with Matthew Horace of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

Brame said a Tacoma man who became friends with Muhammad through a mutual interest in firearms contacted police after the two men were arrested last week.

The man, whom he would not identify, said he was concerned because Muhammad had once borrowed his guns. Muhammad and Malvo had stayed at the man's residence between February and April, and lived there full time between May and July, Brame said.

The man, who is not a suspect in any crimes, gave police three handguns and two rifles for testing, Brame said.

The Washington State Crime Lab says one of those guns, a .45-caliber pistol, was used to kill 21-year-old Keenya Nicole Cook on Feb. 16 when she answered the door of her aunt's Tacoma home. Court records place Muhammad in Tacoma last Feb. 12, when he was ticketed for shoplifting.

On Feb. 16, Isa Nichols returned home after running an errand to find her niece's body just inside her open front door. Cook had been shot in the face. Her 6-month-old daughter was found, unharmed, on a diaper changing table.

Cook's mother, Pamala Nichols, 45, said that as soon as she heard that John Muhammad was linked to shooting so many people on the East Coast, she thought he had something to do with her daughter's murder. Police have said they suspected her killer was someone familiar to her.

"I am so happy that they have been able to put a link to all of this. I knew that he didn't like my sister-in-law," Nichols said yesterday.

Isa Nichols, Cook's aunt, was friends with Muhammad's ex-wife, Mildred. Isa Nichols had helped Mildred regain custody of her children last year, after John Muhammad took them in a bitter divorce.

Family members have said that Isa Nichols called police last week after seeing Muhammad's photograph on television.

"We now consider John Allen Muhammad and Lee Malvo as suspects in the Keenya Cook homicide. I have directed that the Keenya Cook homicide receive our highest priority and I have assigned a team of detectives to the case," Brame said.

The second gun, a .44-caliber Magnum, was used to fire two rounds through a window at the Temple Beth El synagogue at 5875 S. 12th St. between May 1 and 4.

One bullet lodged in the ark, which holds the Torah, the sacred writings of Judaism. No one was in or near the synagogue when the shots were fired.

The ATF has been actively investigating the crime since it occurred, Brame said.

"We're as surprised as anybody would be," Rabbi Mark Glickman said last night. Glickman said he and his congregation had thought the shots were a random shooting because there were no threats associated with them.

"At the time we were just glad the Torah scrolls didn't get damaged," he said.

The revelation that the shot may have come from a weapon wielded by Muhammad, and may have been deliberately aimed at the ark in the holiest room in the synagogue, is disturbing not just to the congregation but to many Jews, said Brian Goldberg, executive director of the Anti-Defamation League Northwest chapter.

"Unfortunately, that synagogue has been the victim of a lot of hate crimes lately," he said.

Still, worshippers haven't been so scared that they quit coming, said Lenny Reisberg, president of the Temple Beth El board of trustees.

"We're a pretty resolute group of people," he said.

The Tacoma crimes are the only ones in Western Washington linked to the two D.C. sniper suspects, although state and local authorities are still reviewing unsolved murder cases statewide to see whether either the men or their method of operation matches anything on file.

The state attorney general's Homicide Investigation Tracking System, a unit of retired detectives with access to nearly 8,000 unsolved slayings, began looking into the case almost immediately, said Gary Larson, spokesman for Attorney General Christine Gregoire.

Larson said yesterday there was no new information about the review. Local authorities, however, said Muhammad has not been linked to any other unsolved homicides.

Federal agents continued their efforts to show how the .223 Bushmaster assault rifle used in the East Coast slayings came into Muhammad's possession. Though the rifle was found in the car where Muhammad and Malvo were sleeping, investigators have yet to find a record of its sale.

Federal agents believe Muhammad bought the weapon at Bull's Eye Shooter Supply, a large Tacoma gun shop. But the shop owner, Brian Borgelt, has been unable to locate records that would show who bought it, authorities said.

Borgelt said yesterday that he still has the box that the rifle was shipped in from the manufacturer in June, and ATF agents were back at the shop for a third straight day yesterday, trying to find a sale record.

Borgelt's store has been under investigation by the bureau for several years. Agents said that two years ago they audited Bull's Eye and could not find sales records for 150 guns. Gun dealers are required to keep records of all purchases and sales.

Borgelt confirmed yesterday that his store had been audited, but said such audits were not unusual.

"If we had prior violations that exceeded the industry standard, we would not be in business," he said.

Because of a large number of guns Borgelt could not account for in that audit, and because they were finding that a large number of guns used in crimes were being traced back to his store, ATF agents said they wanted to take action against him. But, the agents said, the ATF operates under tight restrictions and has been very slow to move against dealers suspected of violating the law.

Normally, several ATF agents said, the bureau's regulatory division will not take action until a gun dealer has been indicted or convicted on a criminal charge.

In fact, one former senior ATF official said, "I don't know of any dealer ever losing his license without being indicted by law enforcement."

Other federal agents are also trying to piece together the trail of Muhammad and Malvo, to determine whether they might have committed other crimes and to find out how they may have supported themselves.

Over the weekend, Washington, D.C., police Chief Charles Ramsey said police were reviewing a number of bank robberies, according to news reports -- including one in which the description of a robber resembled one of the men.

"We're looking at some robberies," Ramsey told The Washington Post. "They had to eat somehow."

Seattle FBI spokeswoman Robbie Burroughs yesterday said no links to bank robberies in the Northwest have been found.

In Bellingham, several people who knew Muhammad have come forward to say that they reported suspicious or bizarre behavior to police within the last year, well before the East Coast crime spree.

Although those who made the reports believe they weren't followed up appropriately, Bellingham police and federal authorities said there's no way they could have predicted such a bizarre crime spree.

Bellingham police followed up on all three reports made to them regarding Muhammad and alerted federal authorities to two of them, said Dac Jamison, Bellingham's chief of detectives. But there was no proof Muhammad had committed a crime or was about to commit one, or was carrying a weapon illegally, he said.

"If we realized they were snipers, would we have done anything differently? Obviously we would have," Jamison said.

According to Jamison:

• In June, an FBI agent drove to Bellingham to check out a report taken from Harjeet Singh after Bellingham police had arrested Singh in a domestic dispute.

Singh told authorities that months earlier, when Muhammad and Malvo were drifting through Bellingham, Muhammad had shown him a blueprint for a silencer for a gun and had railed about killing police officers and shooting gasoline tanker trucks to make them explode.

Citing a law enforcement source, The Associated Press said the FBI did not try to interview Muhammad, concluding the silencer issue was a matter for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and threats against police were a local matter.

• On Nov. 30, 2001, Kristine Sagor told police she drove Muhammad to a gunsmith in Ferndale to see about shortening the barrel of a rifle and attaching a silencer. The gunsmith refused the job as illegal.

In another instance, the Rev. Al Archer, director of Light House Missions in Bellingham, said he contacted the FBI about Muhammad in mid-October 2001. Bellingham police said they never saw the complaint.

Archer said he never heard back from the FBI. The country was on high alert for terrorist attacks and the FBI and other federal agencies were overwhelmed with tips.

Archer said he was suspicious of Muhammad because he was living in a homeless shelter but was receiving phone calls from travel agents and taking trips to Jamaica, New Orleans and possibly Antigua.

"That doesn't happen a lot in a mission," he said.

---

P-I reporters Chris McGann, Sam Skolnik and Hector Castro contributed to this report. P-I reporter Mike Barber can be reached at 206-448-8018 or mikebarber@seattlepi.com

© 1998-2002 Seattle Post-Intelligencer

[twntaipan]

This is an interesting twist--at least the part about the firing at a synagogue. Got to at least add to the likelihood of a terrorist angle.

[Sabertooth]

The second gun, a .44-caliber Magnum, was used to fire two rounds through a window at the Temple Beth El synagogue at 5875 S. 12th St. between May 1 and 4.

One bullet lodged in the ark, which holds the Torah, the sacred writings of Judaism. No one was in or near the synagogue when the shots were fired...

The revelation that the shot may have come from a weapon wielded by Muhammad, and may have been deliberately aimed at the ark in the holiest room in the synagogue, is disturbing not just to the congregation but to many Jews, said Brian Goldberg, executive director of the Anti-Defamation League Northwest chapter.

Yep, Islam had nothing to do with this.

Post here to the thread if you'd like to be on or off the Sniper Muhammad ping list.

[sarcasm]

Do tigers sleep?

[Fred Mertz]

Federal agents continued their efforts to show how the .223 Bushmaster assault rifle used in the East Coast slayings came into Muhammad's possession. Though the rifle was found in the car where Muhammad and Malvo were sleeping, investigators have yet to find a record of its sale.

I believe the feds know who bought this rifle.

Please add me to your sniper ping list.

[patriciaruth]

Authorities are still unsure about his age, saying he may be 19.

Pounce! Oh, I sure hope so.

[VOA]

Yep, Islam had nothing to do with this.

As I told some politically-correct dweebs at work:
"I'm starting to believe in the power of Islam. I don't know of any other religion
(actually ideology) that can make serial killers out of some guys who are not white,
male, Southern, and poorly educated.".

I'm managed to hold off when saying that it's amazing that the snipers were black...
as the news media had given the impression that only white males have the
focus and drive to accomplish the crimes of the Beltway Sniper(s).

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

Now we add anti-semite to America-hating Islamic extremist. We most definitely need to rethink executing him. We should begin weapons inspections for the next twelve years. He will be allowed to take pot shots at police of course. But so long as he doesn't provoke us, we should allow him to get on with his life. No need for pre-emptive strikes on him. Perhaps we should hold talks and offer him land. I recommend we let him move into Hillary's house.

[Miss Marple]

Thanks for the ping, Sabertooth. I am beginning to think that if they find these guys carried autographed pictures of bin Laden the media will still try and tell us they are "psychologically disturbed."

[The Great Satan]

Tsk, tsk. No doubt Mohammed, a walking apostle of the religion of peace, was simply inflamed by the sight of a yarmulke. Quite understandable, I'm sure. America's Jews would be advised to dress less provocatively in future -- like the ones in Berlin.

[wita]

Don't forget the "nasty divorce" and the family hating crime spree before going "over the top". Heard another rumor on Michael Reagan's talk show from an FBI guest, that the whole sniper thing was eventually to do in his former wife and children who had recently moved to DC and it would be blamed on the DC sniper and no one would make the connection to mr muhammed. He wasn't supposed to get caught.

[twntaipan]

That is as speculative as the "white van-white man" scheme from LEOs.

[aristeides]

I think I heard a report on the radio yesterday that the authorities now think the Bushmaster was stolen from the gun shop.

[aristeides]

The police searched the woods in Clinton, MD (the town where the second ex-wife is living in hiding) on Oct. 8 (the day after the shooting of the boy in Bowie) after receiving a report of a suspicious man sighted in those woods.

Oct. 8th is also the day the police in Baltimore investigated Muhammad and the Caprice, in which he and Malvo had apparently been sleeping. Does anybody know at what time of day that happened?

[anniegetyourgun]

That is a weird presupposition that the media makes - as if we knew anything about their race before they were caught. They could have turned up Malaysian instead of American and Jamaican.

I am, however, hoping that the feds are on the lookout for the opening this black (or is the correct term around here, African-American?) man has given to Aryans who might target their favorite folks to hate - Jews, while making the crime scene appear to be hit by a ME muslim or black muslim (more favorites on their hit list).

[jaybee]

Baton Rouge. . . wasn't there some sort of serial killing going on around there recently? Anyone know why the reference to DNA in Baton Rouge? Maybe the Louisiana authorities are grasping at straws on that one.

[Dante3]

A black reporter in The Washington Times (Oct. 29, Page B5) writes that 20% of respondents on a black Web stie -- blackamerica.com -- said they believed the police were scapegoating Muhammad and Malvo.

[anniegetyourgun]

That same percentage of white libs probably believe that Bush sabatoged Wellstone's plane. Libs can be much more paranoid than some of the freaks we have on the right-wing.

[Catspaw]

Louis Farrakahn and the Nation of Islam are antisemitic in their own right:

http://www.adl.org/special_reports/farrakhan_own_words/on_jews.asp

[neutrino]

We should begin weapons inspections for the next twelve years

You have a gift for irony! Promise to use it only for good!

[dennisw]

Gets creepier and worse all the time with these two scumbags. Each day brings new revelations about their lives and crimes.

J Muhammad got away with numerous crimes before he terrorized the DC area.... Immigrant smuggling, crazy behavior in the Army, ripping off his partner in the karate school, and more.