PittsburghAfterDark
CAGiversary!
UNC attacker sought revenge
Not terrorism, now it's religous revenge.
But Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar appears to have acted alone, campus police say
Karin Rives and Samiha Khanna, Staff Writers
A UNC-Chapel Hill graduate told investigators he intentionally drove into a crowd of students on campus Friday to "avenge the deaths of Muslims around the world," UNC Police Chief Derek Poarch said Saturday.
Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar, 22, told detectives to go to the Carrboro apartment he shared with two other men, saying authorities would find evidence there that would explain his decision to hurt students. Poarch declined to say what, if anything, was found, but emphasized that Taheri-azar appears to have acted alone.
It does not appear that Friday's attack had anything to do with a recent editorial criticizing Arabs and a cartoon depicting the prophet Muhammad in the campus newspaper, both of which angered many Muslim students, Poarch said at a news conference Saturday.
But because Taheri-azar's statements to police suggested a political motive, campus authorities contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation, he said.
Taheri-azar was charged Friday night in the Orange County Magistrate Court in Chapel Hill with nine counts of attempted first-degree murder and nine counts of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury with intent to kill. There were no federal charges Saturday.
He is being held in Central Prison in Raleigh in lieu of a $5.5 million bail because he's considered a high-profile prisoner and because of the size of the bail, Poarch said.
Nine students were hit when Taheri-azar sped a rented Jeep Cherokee into a student gathering area shortly after noon Friday. Six students were treated at UNC Hospitals and released by Friday evening; the remaining three declined treatment.
"We are very grateful" no one was injured more seriously, said Margaret Jablonski, the university's vice chancellor for student affairs. As of Saturday afternoon, about 50 students had contacted the university's Counseling and Psychological Services counselors to talk about the incident, she said.
Taheri-azar's background and where his family is remain a mystery. As of Saturday afternoon, investigators had not yet been able to reach any of his family members, Poarch said.
They also could not confirm that he is a United States citizen or say whether he has a history of mental problems.
Taheri-azar apparently has spent most of his life in this country, having received his Social Security number in 1991. He also registered to vote several times; only citizens are allowed to vote. DEMOCRAT, no doubt about that one is there....
In 2003, when convicted in Orange County of reckless driving, he was listed as living in Charlotte.
Those who knew him describe the Iranian native as friendly but reserved. "A really nice guy," said Dan Mall, who employed Taheri-azar part-time in his sandwich shop on Franklin Street. Taheri-azar had only worked in the shop for the past three weeks and was always helpful and pleasant to be around, he said.
Mall declined to elaborate, saying police had asked that all questions about Taheri-azar be directed to them.
Rebekah Marie McInnis, a senior at the university who collaborated with Taheri-azar on a philosophy paper last fall, described him as quiet person who never talked about his family or himself. He was also a diligent student who constantly asked questions to make sure he understood the material, she said.
So far, Taheri-azar has been very cooperative with police, Poarch said. He will appear for the first time before a judge at a hearing in Orange County District Court on Monday.
Authorities used some sort of explosive to get into Taheri-azar's apartment in the University Commons complex in Carrboro on Friday. Charred fragments of molding and siding surrounded the doorway Saturday, while debris, including a white plastic kitchen trash can, latex gloves, hinges, glass and pieces of a doorknob littered the landing. The door itself, blackened and warped, leaned backward into the foyer, leaving the inside of the four-bedroom apartment open to view. Neither of Taheri-azar's two roommates appeared to be home.
Neighbor Paul Bonnici, 23, lives across from Taheri-azar's apartment. He said he didn't know the young man, but that they often exchanged friendly hellos when meeting on the stairs or at the mailboxes. Nothing unusual has happened in more than a year of living at University Commons, Bonnici said.
"This building is pretty quiet," he said. "I moved from New York. I didn't expect this in Chapel Hill."
Police kept Bonnici from entering his apartment until after 9 p.m. Friday, he said. When he went to bed at 11:30 p.m., a half-dozen men wearing FBI jackets were still outside his door, he said.
Another neighbor, 20-year-old Tyson Grinstead, also said he noticed little about Taheri-azar. A member of the university's student congress, Grinstead said that the incident is upsetting, but that he doesn't want to jump to conclusions. "I'm waiting for all the facts to come out before making any accusations," he said.
Charlotte News Observer
I look forward to acts of terrorism now being proclaimed "religous revenge". Amazing what lengths the MSM will go to do distance the words Muslim or Islamic from the correctly labeled "terrorism".
Not terrorism, now it's religous revenge.
But Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar appears to have acted alone, campus police say
Karin Rives and Samiha Khanna, Staff Writers
A UNC-Chapel Hill graduate told investigators he intentionally drove into a crowd of students on campus Friday to "avenge the deaths of Muslims around the world," UNC Police Chief Derek Poarch said Saturday.
Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar, 22, told detectives to go to the Carrboro apartment he shared with two other men, saying authorities would find evidence there that would explain his decision to hurt students. Poarch declined to say what, if anything, was found, but emphasized that Taheri-azar appears to have acted alone.
It does not appear that Friday's attack had anything to do with a recent editorial criticizing Arabs and a cartoon depicting the prophet Muhammad in the campus newspaper, both of which angered many Muslim students, Poarch said at a news conference Saturday.
But because Taheri-azar's statements to police suggested a political motive, campus authorities contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation, he said.
Taheri-azar was charged Friday night in the Orange County Magistrate Court in Chapel Hill with nine counts of attempted first-degree murder and nine counts of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury with intent to kill. There were no federal charges Saturday.
He is being held in Central Prison in Raleigh in lieu of a $5.5 million bail because he's considered a high-profile prisoner and because of the size of the bail, Poarch said.
Nine students were hit when Taheri-azar sped a rented Jeep Cherokee into a student gathering area shortly after noon Friday. Six students were treated at UNC Hospitals and released by Friday evening; the remaining three declined treatment.
"We are very grateful" no one was injured more seriously, said Margaret Jablonski, the university's vice chancellor for student affairs. As of Saturday afternoon, about 50 students had contacted the university's Counseling and Psychological Services counselors to talk about the incident, she said.
Taheri-azar's background and where his family is remain a mystery. As of Saturday afternoon, investigators had not yet been able to reach any of his family members, Poarch said.
They also could not confirm that he is a United States citizen or say whether he has a history of mental problems.
Taheri-azar apparently has spent most of his life in this country, having received his Social Security number in 1991. He also registered to vote several times; only citizens are allowed to vote. DEMOCRAT, no doubt about that one is there....
In 2003, when convicted in Orange County of reckless driving, he was listed as living in Charlotte.
Those who knew him describe the Iranian native as friendly but reserved. "A really nice guy," said Dan Mall, who employed Taheri-azar part-time in his sandwich shop on Franklin Street. Taheri-azar had only worked in the shop for the past three weeks and was always helpful and pleasant to be around, he said.
Mall declined to elaborate, saying police had asked that all questions about Taheri-azar be directed to them.
Rebekah Marie McInnis, a senior at the university who collaborated with Taheri-azar on a philosophy paper last fall, described him as quiet person who never talked about his family or himself. He was also a diligent student who constantly asked questions to make sure he understood the material, she said.
So far, Taheri-azar has been very cooperative with police, Poarch said. He will appear for the first time before a judge at a hearing in Orange County District Court on Monday.
Authorities used some sort of explosive to get into Taheri-azar's apartment in the University Commons complex in Carrboro on Friday. Charred fragments of molding and siding surrounded the doorway Saturday, while debris, including a white plastic kitchen trash can, latex gloves, hinges, glass and pieces of a doorknob littered the landing. The door itself, blackened and warped, leaned backward into the foyer, leaving the inside of the four-bedroom apartment open to view. Neither of Taheri-azar's two roommates appeared to be home.
Neighbor Paul Bonnici, 23, lives across from Taheri-azar's apartment. He said he didn't know the young man, but that they often exchanged friendly hellos when meeting on the stairs or at the mailboxes. Nothing unusual has happened in more than a year of living at University Commons, Bonnici said.
"This building is pretty quiet," he said. "I moved from New York. I didn't expect this in Chapel Hill."
Police kept Bonnici from entering his apartment until after 9 p.m. Friday, he said. When he went to bed at 11:30 p.m., a half-dozen men wearing FBI jackets were still outside his door, he said.
Another neighbor, 20-year-old Tyson Grinstead, also said he noticed little about Taheri-azar. A member of the university's student congress, Grinstead said that the incident is upsetting, but that he doesn't want to jump to conclusions. "I'm waiting for all the facts to come out before making any accusations," he said.
Charlotte News Observer
I look forward to acts of terrorism now being proclaimed "religous revenge". Amazing what lengths the MSM will go to do distance the words Muslim or Islamic from the correctly labeled "terrorism".
