Washington DC, United States.- The man suspected of killing eight people on Saturday in a Texas shopping center was discharged from the US Army in 2008, after less than three months in the institution, an Army spokesman said.
The shooter, killed by a police officer, was identified as Mauricio García, 33, originally from Dallas, in the south of the country.
He entered the Army in June 2008, and was fired three months later without having finished his initial training, said Heather Hagan, a spokesperson for the institution, without specifying the reasons for the untimely dismissal.
The authorities have not wanted to comment on the suspect’s alleged affiliation with extreme right-wing groups reported by the US media. A police source confirmed, however, that these elements come from a leaked document from the investigation.
According to various media and the investigative site Bellingcat, the suspect had an account on a Russian social network in which he shared misogynist and neo-Nazi ideas, but also concerns about his own mental health.
On Saturday, a man wearing paramilitary gear and carrying an assault rifle opened fire at the Allen Mall in north Dallas, where many customers were shopping, killing eight people and wounding others.
With more firearms than inhabitants, the United States has the highest firearm mortality rate of all developed countries: 49,000 in 2021, against 45,000 in 2020.
According to the specialized site Gun Violence Archive, so far this year, the United States has registered more than 199 acts in which four or more people died or were injured by bullets.
