A neighbor of one of the suspected San Diego mosque shooters broke down while she described the ‘green-haired’ teen who authorities say killed three people in an alleged hate crime.
The suspects, identified by police as Cain Clark, 17, and Caleb Vazquez, 18, were reported missing two hours before they opened fire outside the Islamic Center of San Diego on Monday, police said.
Clark’s elderly neighbor, Marne Celaya, became distraught while describing the teen she said she had known since his mother was pregnant with him.
'We've seen him with green hair and blue hair, and we didn't talk much. But then, as I said, he helped us bring in groceries, and he'd wave at us,’ she said.
Police are investigating the shooting as a hate crime after the teenagers were found with self-inflicted gunshot wounds outside the mosque.
Images from the scene showed a red gasoline canister with a sticker resembling a Nazi SS logo, as a shotgun lay nearby.
Authorities had already been on the lookout for the two youths, after one of their mothers called officers to report that her son had run away with 'several of her weapons' and her vehicle, Chief Scott Wahl said.
Investigators plan to execute search warrants related to the investigation on Tuesday as they piece together how and why the shooting unfolded.
Follow along for the latest updates...
Neighbor of San Diego shooter breaks down as she reveals details from killer's childhood
Neighbors of the 17-year-old San Diego mosque shooting suspect, Cain Clark, recalled their interactions with him and his family over the years.
'We were here when they moved in. They had, the older son was, you know, small. And then she was pregnant and had the younger one, which I understand must be the one that there might be involved,' Marne Celaya told the Associated Press.
She described Clark as a quiet but polite kid.
'He's helped us bring in our groceries. They all have. They got me a cake when I turned 80. You know, we waved, say hi. They had a fire in their house. We got them flowers,' Celaya added.
'We've seen him with green hair and blue hair, and we didn't talk much. But then, as I said, he helped us bring in groceries, and he'd wave at us.'
13:07
Security guard who died trying to save others identified as father of eight
Amin Abdullah, a father of eight, was among those killed when two teenage shooters opened fire at the Islamic Center of San Diego on Monday.
Anees Faraj, a security guard who has worked at the mosque off and on for over 10 years, told the Daily Mail the guard shot dead in the attack was named Amin, and he had eight children.
Two others were also found dead outside the mosque when authorities responded to the scene and started searching for the suspects, who were later found dead inside a vehicle of apparent self-inflicted gunshot wounds.
13:04
'Hate rhetoric' belonging to teen gunmen discovered inside vehicle and scrawled on firearms
The two teenage suspects who opened fire on a San Diego mosque scrawled hate rhetoric on their weapons before carrying out the attack, police said.
Investigators said they are also probing anti-Islamic writings that were also found inside a vehicle believed to be linked to the gunmen.
13:02
Fundraiser launched for hero security guard
A fundraiser on LaunchGood, a faith-based crowdfunding platform for Muslims, has raised over $1.5 million for the family of Islamic Center of San Diego security guard, Amin Abdullah.
'He stood his ground so others could make it home safely,' LaunchGood wrote.
'When gunmen opened fire outside the Islamic Center of San Diego, Amin protected the community until his final moments. Police say his actions prevented the attack from becoming far worse.'
12:54
Chilling police audio of cops descending on scene of San Diego mosque shooting
Distressing police audio has revealed what happened on the ground as cops descended on the San Diego mosque shooting that left three people dead.
Officers with the city's police department responded to the Islamic Center of San Diego after shots rang out on Monday.
Amongst the chaos, police searched for the two teenage gunman while also pulling victims away from the scene to be given life saving measures, radio chatter revealed.
12:53
Teen mosque killer, Cain Clark, 17, pictured
Cain Clark, 17, was one of two teenagers who opened fire at a California mosque on Monday before taking his own life, authorities say.
Clark, who was set to graduate high school this month, attended classes at the district's iHigh Virtual Academy and participated in Madison High School's wrestling team for the 2024-2025 season
Police named the other suspect as Caleb Vazquez, 18, who has not yet been pictured.
