Fargo shooter searched for area events in the Fargo-Moorhead area ahead of shooting

The man responsible for Wallin’s death and injuring two other Fargo police officers and wounding a 25-year-old Fargo woman had an extensive computer search history.

In a news conference on Friday, North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley said Mohamed Barakat was interested in community events in the days leading up to the shooting and his other online searches included the terms “explosive ammo” and “kill fast.”
“Mass shooting event, chillingly, area events, area events where there are crowds in the Fargo-Moorhead area, Cass County area, all around,” said Wrigley. “He singled out a few as he went along. and on the last search, on the last night, at 10:30 p.m. on July 13, quote, thousands enjoy first day of downtown Fargo street fair.”

Barakat used what’s known as a “binary trigger” on the modified rifle he used to shoot the victims on July 14.

The modification allowed him to quickly fire up to 60 rounds in a matter of seconds.

Barakat migrated to this country from Syria in 2012 and eventually became a U.S. citizen in 2019.

Wrigley said Barakat was driven by hate and wanted to kill.

And in response to inquiries about the shooter’s possible motive, Wrigley said he didn’t seem particularly focused on a specific group of people or any specific individual, it was simply to kill.

“There have been inquiries about the why, what’s the motive?” said Wrigley. “I’ve been in and out of law enforcement for 30 years and you might be surprised to know how many times you finish up and you are still scratching your head. motive, the obvious motive to kill. I mean, driven by hate, driven by wanting to kill. Not particularized to some group that we can discern at this moment. not particularized to one individual that we can see. The horrible winds of fate, that’s the best explanation I have for you for how he saw those officers on the way to where we believed he was going.”

He also commended the courage of Fargo Police Officer Zach Robinson who protected his fellow officers and an injured bystander, and ultimately saved the community from a much deeper tragedy.

“One officer remaining, if he goes down, what, five, six blocks to downtown Fargo,” he said. “The heroics it took to preserve the lives of Karlee, of Andrew, of Tyler, there wouldn’t have been enough emergency personnel within a three-state area to meet the needs.”

Fargo Police Chief Dave Zibolski said the two injured officers remain hospitalized, but their recovery is not “insurmountable.”