Arizona Suspected Gunman Passed FBI Criminal Background Check

Representative Gabrielle Giffords, an Arizona Democrat, and at least 17 others were shot on January 8, 2011, Saturday morning when a gunman opened fire outside a supermarket where Ms. Giffords was meeting with constituents.

Ms. Giffords, 40, whom the authorities called the target of the attack, was in critical condition Sunday morning at the University Medical Center in Tucson, where she was operated on by a team of neurosurgeons on Saturday.

Six of the victims died, among them John M. Roll, the chief judge for the United States District Court for Arizona, and a 9-year-old girl, the Pima County sheriff, Clarence W. Dupnik, said.

The suspect in Saturday’s deadly rampage purchased a firearm legally after passing an FBI background check. Jared Lee Loughner, a 22-year-old man with a troubled past who law enforcement say may have been influenced by American Renaissance, a pro-white publication, bought the gun from Sportsman’s Warehouse’s Tucson store in November.

Mr. Loughner had exhibited increasingly strange behavior in recent months, including ominous Internet postings – at least one showing a gun – and a series of videos in which he made disjointed statements on topics like the gold standard and mind control.

Pima Community College said he had been suspended for conduct violations and withdrew in October after five instances of classroom or library disruptions that involved the campus police.

Loughner, accused of killing six people, shooting Arizona Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and wounding 13 others, did not present a concealed weapons permit so he was required to pass an FBI background check. He did so “immediately and without incident,” said Matt French, speaking from the Sportsman’s Warehouse’s Utah headquarters.

“To my knowledge, the firearm purchase was without incident,” French said.
French could not confirm whether the gun purchased in November was the same gun allegedly used in Saturday’s mass shooting, for which Loughner so far has been charged with five counts of murder and attempted murder. However, he said it was the only recent firearm purchase made by the suspect at their stores.

President Obama, speaking at the White House, confirmed that a suspect was in custody and said that the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Robert S. Mueller III, was on his way to Arizona to oversee the investigation.

Original Source – Fox News