AP News52%
Shooters kill 3 people at San Diego mosque, both suspects dead, police say 9%
By Nell Clark0% Jim Anderson0%
5/18/2026, 4:45:05 PM
BS Summary: This article contains 24 faulty reasoning types, including Confirmation Bias, Appeal to Emotion, and Ambiguity (Equivocation), with Appeal to Authority as the most egregious example at 8.2% saturation with 108 hits. Analysis detected 1,335 faulty-reasoning hits from 1,323 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 25.5% and a BS Rank of 9% (15,437 of 16,813 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 91.80% of the article peer group.
Shooters kill 3 people at San Diego mosque, both suspects dead, police say
Two teenage suspects killed three men in a shooting at a San Diego mosque before killing themselves a few blocks away, San Diego’s police chief Scott Wahl said at a news conference Monday.
A mosque security guard was among the dead in what is being described as a hate crime at the Islamic Center of San Diego, Wahl said.
The Islamic Center of San Diego is the largest mosque in San Diego County.
Here’s what we know so far:
The victims: Among those killed was a mosque security guard, who police believe “played a pivotal role” in keeping the attack from being “much worse,” Wahl said.
People reported multiple shots at the mosque, Officer Anthony Carrasco said.
The two shooters: Wahl says the suspects were found dead in a vehicle stopped in the middle of a road nearby.
It is unclear if the shooters were outside or inside the building when they opened fire.
The location: The Islamic Center’s campus includes the Al Rashid School, which the website says offers courses in Arabic language, Islamic studies and the Quran.
Updates take time: Compiling accurate and thorough information on an active shooting takes time.
Reporters are working to piece together the details from eyewitness accounts, authorities and other sources.
Center welcoming to all, worshipper says
“They’ve always opened their doors, even to people who aren’t Muslim, they invite people to Ramadan dinners,” said Josie-Ana Edenshaw, who has been attending the Islamic Center for 3 years.
Edenshaw said she first found the center when she moved to San Diego because it held Friday prayers in English as well as Arabic.
The mosque is open five times a day for prayers and often has other events on Friday nights.
Edenshaw said thousands will gather for the two major Eid festivals in the Islamic calendar.
Wahl says suspect’s mother who contacted police found a note
He did not disclose its contents but said of the case, “There was definitely hate rhetoric that was involved.”
He says there was no specific threat against the Islamic Center.
Wahl says the teenager whose mom contacted police was a student at Madison High School, about a mile away from the Islamic Center.
Police have not released the names of the teenagers.
Authorities continue to review the security guard’s role
But Wahl says that “it’s fair to say his actions were heroic.”
“Undoubtedly he saved lives today,” the police chief said.
The guard’s identity has yet to be released.
Police say there are indications it was a hate crime
There had been no specific threat made against the Islamic Center of San Diego, but San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl said investigators were aware of “generalized hate rhetoric” in the case and are investigating the attack as a hate crime.
Wahl noted that the mother of one of the suspects found a note he left behind, but the chief declined to disclose its contents.
Police chief: Mother of one suspect reported him to police as a runaway
San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl says that about two hours before the attack, the mother of one of the suspects called police to report that her son was missing.
Wahl told a news conference the she feared he might be suicidal, and she eventually realized that several of her weapons were missing, along with her vehicle.
The case became even more urgent when police learned that he was dressed in camouflage and that he was in the company of an acquaintance, and officers began using whatever technology they had available to locate the teens, including automated license plate readers.
Wahl said that’s when police began getting reports of a shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego.
Responding officers found the three victims at the mosque and the two teens dead of apparently self-inflicted gunshot wounds in a vehicle nearby.
One person with a non-firearm-related injury was transported to hospital
That’s according to Sharp Memorial Hospital spokesperson Erica Carlson.
Carlson says the hospital did not expect to receive additional patients but was staying in contact with the San Diego County Office of Emergency Services.
The hospital declined to provide additional details.
Center’s Al Rashid School offers courses in Arabic language, Islamic studies and the Quran for students ages 5 and up
That’s according to the center’s website.
Parents were directed to a nearby area to retrieve their children.
Students at mosque are safe, police say
“All of the kids are safe,” Wahl said, appearing emotional.
“Our hearts go out to the families that are in this moment being notified of what has happened to their loved ones.”
Mosque director: ‘Extremely outrageous to target a place of worship’
Imam Taha Hassane also said at a news conference that “all the places of worship in our beautiful city should always be protected.”
Muslim civil rights group condemns the shooting
Tazheen Nizam of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in San Diego says that “No one should ever fear for their safety while attending prayers or studying at an elementary school.”
Nizam says in a statement that CAIR is “working to learn more about this incident and we encourage everyone to keep this community in your prayers.”
The security guard who was killed ‘played a pivotal role in assisting from this being much worse’
That’s according to Chief Wahl.
Police chief says suspects were found dead in a vehicle
Wahl says that as officers responded to the mosque, they also fielded reports of gunfire a few blocks away, where a landscaper was shot at but was uninjured.
He says the suspects were found dead in a vehicle stopped in the middle of a road nearby.
Center’s director says the mosque focuses on interfaith relations
Imam Taha Hassane says it also works to build relations in the community.
He told a news conference that a group of non-Muslims had been touring the mosque earlier Monday to learn about the Muslim faith.
Security guard among those killed
That’s according to San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl.
Police chief says 3 men were killed and that both suspects are dead
Chief Scott Wahl says both suspects are believed to be teens and that the case is considered to be a hate crime.
JUST IN: 3 men have been killed at a San Diego mosque and both suspects are dead, police say
Gov.
Gavin Newsom’s office says he is being briefed
“We are grateful to the first responders on the scene working to protect the community and urge everyone to follow guidance from local authorities,” his office posted on the social platform X.
Where the shooting happened
The Islamic Center about 9 miles (14 km) north of downtown San Diego.
Islamic Center is the largest mosque in San Diego County
That’s according to its website.
The campus includes the Al Rashid School, which the website says offers courses in Arabic language, Islamic studies and the Quran.
Aerial TV footage showed more than a dozen children holding hands and being walked out of the parking lot of the center that is surrounded by scores of police vehicles.
The white mosque is in a neighborhood of homes, apartments and strip malls with Middle Eastern restaurants and markets.
AP photographer captures the scene outside the mosque in San Diego
The 2 suspects in a shooting at a San Diego mosque are dead, a police source says
The two suspects in a Monday shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego are dead.
That’s according to a police source who spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss further details.
Authorities earlier said they believe multiple people have been shot.
They have not released more details.
JUST IN: The 2 suspects in a shooting at a San Diego mosque are dead, a police source says
Analysis
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