Search for motive behind Travis Air Force Base attack continues

Search for motive behind Travis Air Force Base attack continues

As the news deluge related to President Donald Trump’s signing the Omnibus Bill begins to recede, there are reports of a potential terror attack at an air force facility in California.

The disturbing incident at Travis Air Force Base in Northern California began when a vehicle burst into flames after speeding through the main gate.

The car that breached the perimeter of a California Air Force base before going up in flames Wednesday night was packed with propane tanks that had been intentionally ignited by the driver….

The driver sped through a gate onto Travis Air Force Base — about 50 miles northeast of San Francisco — around 7 p.m. local time, and careened into a ditch, where the car burst into flames, according to CBS News.

The driver, whose identity has yet to be released, died inside the car, apparently from the fire. No other injuries were reported.

The driver has been identified as 51-year-old Hafiz Kazi.

Sources described Kazi as a “nomad” and a “vagabond,” who lived in many places.

Authorities extracted a video from his cell phone and are analyzing it to try and see if it could help point to a motive. Sources wouldn’t offer any details about the video.

The FBI held a press conference Friday at 3:30 p.m. to talk about the incident and the ongoing investigation. During the press conference, officials said the driver had five propane tanks, three phones and several lighters inside, but they have not figured out a motive for the crash and are working to determine why the man approached the gate.

FBI officials indicate that, after a preliminary investigation, they do not believe the incident to be terrorism-related.   However, officials are still mystified as to why Hazi attacked the base.

[FBI agent Sean] Ragan said “we don’t have any nexus to terrorism at this point,” but investigators haven’t determined a motive.

“Why did this individual end up at the front gate of Travis Air Force Base on fire, that’s something we want to know, and the public wants to know,” Ragan said.

Ragan said Kazi lived throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and has lived in the United States since 1993. He said Kazi is a native of India who was a permanent legal resident of the United States.

This assessment is based, in part, on a review of Kazi’s phone records.

Ragan said Kazi had recently worked as a cabdriver in the San Francisco Bay area. But authorities have yet to determine where he was living.

An initial check of three cellphones found in the vehicle did not turn up any jihadist propaganda, Ragan said.

However, investigators are still stumped in their determination of a potential motive, and the search into Kazi’s contacts is continuing.

Kazi had no known links to terrorism, did not leave behind a manifesto or any threats or explanation, and a video found on a cellphone provided no clue.

…Investigators have interviewed some of Kazi’s acquaintances and are working on some search warrants, he said. They are also scouring social media, so far without result.

Calls to several numbers associated with Kazi were not returned Friday.

Interestingly, Travis Air Force Base handles more cargo and passenger traffic through its airport than any other military air terminal in the United States, and the base has 7,260 active USAF military personnel, 4,250 Air Force Reserve personnel and 3,770 civilians.

I am glad they all are safe, and I hope the FBI can provide a more robust explanation of the motives for this incident.

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