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North Carolina teen charged with murder for aiding San Diego mosque shooting livestream

A grand jury indicted a 17-year-old girl accused of recording the May attack's video stream and distributing the shooters' manifesto.

The short version

  • A 17-year-old North Carolina girl was arrested and indicted on three counts of murder by aiding and abetting and one count of conspiracy.
  • Prosecutors allege the teenager recorded the livestream of the May 18 shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego and published the attackers' white supremacist writings.
  • The attack resulted in the deaths of three men, including a security guard, before the two primary gunmen died by suicide nearby.
  • Under North Carolina law, aiding and abetting carries the same legal penalties as directly committing the underlying crime.

Key facts

  • Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O'Neill announced that a 17-year-old girl was arrested and indicted by a grand jury on three counts of murder by aiding and abetting and one count of conspiracy.[CBS News · Associated Press · The Guardian]
  • Authorities allege the teen recorded the livestream of the attack captured by the shooters' GoPro helmets and shared their manifesto.[CBS News · Associated Press · The Guardian]
  • The May 18 shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego killed three men: security guard Amin Abdullah, Mansour Kaziha, and Nader Awad.[CBS News · Associated Press · The Guardian]
  • The two gunmen, identified as Cain Clark, 17, and Caleb Vazquez, 18, died by suicide in a nearby vehicle after being driven outside by the security guard, who initiated a lockdown protecting 140 children.[CBS News · Associated Press · The Guardian]
  • The District Attorney noted that under North Carolina law, aiding and abetting carries the same penalties as committing the crime directly.[CBS News · Associated Press · The Guardian]

What remains uncertain

Sources