United States lawmaker, Riley Moore, has alleged that a shooter who attacked Old Dominion University in Virginia met with members of the extremist group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Nigeria before carrying out the incident.
Moore made the allegation on his account on Saturday, in response to the attack.
Naija News understands that the attacker, Bailor Jalloh, a former Virginia National Guard member and convicted supporter of ISIS, entered a classroom filled with Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) students and opened fire.
According to the FBI, the gunman shouted “Allahu Akbar”, Arabic for “God is greater”, before shooting at students inside Constant Hall.
The classroom quickly descended into chaos as terrified students scrambled for safety.
However, several ROTC students bravely confronted the gunman and ultimately subdued him, preventing what authorities believe could have been a far deadlier massacre.
Reacting to the development, the lawmaker claimed that the suspect was earlier imprisoned but was released before the attack despite alleged ties to the terrorist group.
“The radical Islamic terrorist who attacked Old Dominion yesterday was let out of prison early despite meeting with ISIL in Nigeria and seeking to aide and abet ISIL in carrying out an attack on our homeland,” Moore said.
The congressman criticised the circumstances surrounding the suspect’s release, describing the development as alarming and unacceptable.
“This is insane, and it MUST END! That’s why I’m introducing a bill to denaturalize and deport any naturalized citizen who seeks to commit a terrorist attack or aids and abets terrorism against the American people,” he said.
