Gunman was not on the FBI’s radar before he opened fire on a crowded Texas bar, authorities say
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The gunman who opened fire outside a crowded Texas bar and killed three people in an attack that wounded more than a dozen had not been on the radar of authorities, federal and local investigators said Monday.
The FBI and police in Austin said it’s too soon to identify the motive behind the mass shooting early Sunday that the FBI has said is being investigated as a potential act of terrorism, coming after the U.S. and Israel launched an attack on Iran.
“Our ultimate goal in everything we do is to determine the motive,” Alex Doran, the acting agent in charge of the FBI’s San Antonio office, said during a news conference.
Police shot and killed the gunman, whom they identified as 53-year-old Ndiaga Diagne. He was wearing clothes with an Iranian flag design and bearing the words “Property of Allah” during the attack, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press.
Investigators are poring over thousands of hours of video and police said there are more than 150 witnesses to interview.
“We are still in the early hours of this investigation,” said Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis.
The gunman legally bought the weapons used in the attack several years ago in San Antonio, Davis said. More information about the suspect along with body camera footage from the officers could be released later this week, Davis said.
Shooting victims include college students
Police identified the victims as 21-year-old Savitha Shan, 19-year-old Ryder Harrington and 30-year-old Jorge Pederson.
Harrington joined the Beta Theta Pi fraternity at Texas Tech University in 2024, the fraternity said in an Instagram post.
“Ryder had a rare ability to truly enjoy life to make people laugh, to make moments feel bigger, and to make ordinary days unforgettable,” the fraternity said. “If anyone embodied what it meant to live fully and love deeply, it was Ryder.”
Texas Tech said in a statement that Harrington had been enrolled as recently as the fall 2025 semester, but was not taking classes this semester.
“Our thoughts are with Ryder’s family, friends, and all those affected by this devastating situation,” the statement said.
Shan’s LinkedIn profile listed her as a dual-degree student majoring in management information systems and economics at the University of Texas at Austin.
University President Jim Davis said her death was “devastating” and that several other students were wounded in the attack.
“Some of these are very serious and we are hoping for the best outcomes, while others are on the path to recovery,” he said in a statement. “I have met with many of these families and will continue to pray for them.”
Austin Police announced Monday evening that Pederson had died from his injuries.
Official says the gunman came to the US in 2000
The gunman in the attack was originally from Senegal, according to multiple people briefed on the investigation who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation.
Diagne first entered the U.S in 2000 on a B-2 tourist visa and became a lawful permanent resident six years later after marrying a U.S. citizen, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
Associated Press reporters on Monday were unable to reach Diagne’s family members in the Austin area or his former wife, who recently was listed as living near San Antonio. A person who answered the door at a house listed for his ex-wife declined to comment and told a reporter to talk with investigators.
Shots stopped for a moment before erupting again
The shooting began outside Buford’s Backyard Beer Garden along Sixth Street, a nightlife destination filled with bars and music clubs close to the University of Texas at Austin.
The gunman drove past the bar, which was packed with students, before circling back and firing the first shots from his SUV at people on the sidewalk and inside the bar, police said.
Inside the bar and across the street next to a food truck, some students dove for cover while others were motionless, trying to understand what was happening.
The shooting stopped for a moment.
The suspect parked, got out with a rifle and began shooting at others before officers rushed to the intersection and shot him, the police chief said.
The FBI said just hours after the shooting that they found “indicators” on the gunman and in his vehicle leading them to look into the possibility of terrorism.
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This story has been corrected to show Harrington was 19, not 22, and that Shan was 21, not 24, based on revised information from Austin police.
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Associated Press writers Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas; Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; and Alanna Durkin Richer, Eric Tucker and Rebecca Santana in Washington contributed.