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AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A tragic shooting unfolded over the weekend in Austin’s vibrant nightlife district when a gunman opened fire at a crowded bar. The assailant was ultimately shot and killed by police, and authorities are now probing the incident as a potential act of terrorism.
The early Sunday attack resulted in the deaths of three individuals and injured more than a dozen others. According to a law enforcement official who spoke with The Associated Press, the suspect was clad in attire featuring an Iranian flag design and the phrase “Property of Allah.”
This mass shooting transpired shortly after a joint U.S. and Israeli operation targeting Iran. The FBI, in collaboration with Austin police, is actively investigating the shooter’s motives, as the incident left patrons and passersby in a frantic scramble for safety.
Suspect fired first shots, parked, then fired again
Authorities reported that the gunman initially drove by Buford’s Backyard Beer Garden before turning around to unleash gunfire from his SUV, targeting both those on the sidewalk and inside the bar.
Amid the chaos, some college students sought refuge by ducking for cover, while others remained frozen in place, both inside the bar and across the street near a food truck, struggling to comprehend the unfolding violence.
The shooting stopped for a moment. Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said the suspect parked, got out with a rifle and fired on others before officers rushed to the intersection and shot him.
Davis identified two victims as 21-year-old Savitha Shan and 19-year-old Ryder Harrington. Austin Police announced Monday evening that 30-year-old Jorge Pederson also died from his injuries.
Harrington joined the Beta Theta Pi fraternity at Texas Tech University in 2024, the fraternity said in an Instagram post. Shan’s LinkedIn profile listed her as a dual-degree student majoring in management information systems and economics at the University of Texas.
University president says shooting affected students
The bar is on Sixth Street, a nightlife destination filled with bars and music clubs near the flagship campus of the University of Texas system. The school is one of the nation’s largest universities with 55,000 enrolled students.
Nathan Comeaux, a 22-year-old senior, spent the evening there with friends and said the bar was “full of college students, probably mostly UT kids, shoulder to shoulder, hundreds just enjoying their nights.”
Some of those affected included “members of our Longhorn family,” University President Jim Davis said, using the name of the school’s mascot.
Police taped off several square blocks around Sixth Street after the shooting. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents and other federal investigators joined local police at the scene.
Shooter was originally from Senegal and legally bought the weapons
Both the FBI and police in Austin said Monday that it’s too soon to identify the motive.
Police said the gunman was 53-year-old Ndiaga Diagne. He legally bought the pistol and rifle he used in the attack several years ago in San Antonio, Davis said.
Diagne was originally from Senegal, according to multiple people briefed on the investigation who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation.
He first entered the U.S. in 2000 on a B-2 tourist visa, becoming a lawful permanent resident six years later after marrying a U.S. citizen, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Associated Press reporters on Monday were unable to reach Diagne’s family members in the Austin area or his ex-wife, who recently was listed as living near San Antonio. A person who answered the door at a house listed for his ex-wife declined to comment and told a reporter to talk with investigators.
Police responded within 1 minute
The entertainment district has a heavy police presence on weekends, and officers were able to confront the gunman within a minute of the first call for help, the police chief said.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson praised the fast response of police and emergency workers.
“They definitely saved lives,” he said.
Comeaux, the UT Austin senior, filmed the suspect as he walked toward Buford’s with his gun pointed at officers, and officers fired at him.
“The shooter was walking towards where I was and towards where the bar was, where there could have been 10 times as much damage if he’d gone back to the bar where hundreds of students were hiding,” Comeaux said. “So I’m just very grateful for the heroic police officers who were able to stop the suspect.”
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McAvoy reported from Honolulu. Associated Press writers Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas; Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; and Alanna Durkin Richer, Eric Tucker and Rebecca Santana in Washington contributed.