Gerrard Kaonga
The FBI has issued a statement after a suspect attempted to ram his vehicle into a synagogue in Michigan.
On March 12, the suspect attempted to drive his vehicle through the doors of Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan and then down a hallway before it caught fire.
Temple Israel is one of the largest reform Jewish synagogues in the US.
Police have confirmed that the suspect has died but did not reveal by what cause.
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The Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard confirmed that security guards at the synagogue opened fire as the suspect approached and then confronted him inside.
One individual who was hit by the vehicle was taken to hospital and is expected to recover.
According to a BBC report, the US Department of Homeland Security identified the suspect as Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, a 41-year-old naturalized US citizen who was born in Lebanon and came to the US in 2011.
At a briefing, Bouchard called the crime a ‘hateful, terrible thing’ but did not elaborate on a potential motive.
He added: "Everything that was supposed to happen, happened, security did their job, and then the responders did theirs."
Speaking later, he added: “We know there's evil in the world. When they show up, that's where training and preparation come in."
The FBI has said they are investigating this incident as a ‘targeted act of violence against the Jewish community’.
FBI special agent Jennifer Runyan has also issued a statement following the incident and gave the public an update on the situation.
She said: “This is a deeply disturbing and tragic incident and our deepest sympathies are with the victims, their family, and the entire Jewish community.
“The FBI is here working with our state, local and federal partners to investigate this incident, and I can confirm that we are leading the investigation right now as a targeted act of violence against the Jewish community.
“As my partners have said, this is an active and ongoing investigation with an active crime scene, and I ask for your patience as we process this evidence and pursue every lead that has come to us and that we have developed thus far."
She went on to say that at this time, they are aware of one suspect being involved and that individual is now deceased. No victims have died.
She also confirmed that the FBI was notified of an ‘active shooter’ at Temple Israel at approximately 12.45pm and deployed a crisis response, which included the SWAT team.