Website alternative to Twitter cooperating with probe into synagogue shooting suspect
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The social media platform where alleged shooter Robert Bowers reportedly voiced anti-Semitic remarks before a lethal shooting spree in a Pittsburgh synagogue, said it is working with the FBI and Department of Justice “without a subpoena.”
Shortly after multiple law enforcement officials identified Bowers, 46, as the shooting suspect involved in the attack on the Tree of Life Synagogue, Gab.com released a statement saying it was “alerted” to a profile that matched his name.
“The account was verified and matched the name of the alleged shooter’s name, which was mentioned on police scanners.”
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Gab.com describes itself as "a social network that champions free speech, individual liberty and the free flow of information online."
As of a 4 p.m. briefing on Saturday, officials were saying that 11 people were killed and six others injured, including four police officers, in the shooting.
Police sources told KDKA that the gunman reportedly shouted "all Jews must die" before opening fire in the synagogue. The media outlet also reported that officials were looking into his Twitter account; there were reports that he may have written about his intentions on Saturday morning.
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Gab.com said in a tweet that it was working with the FBI and the Department of Justice by sending “the data” regarding the Bowers account without a subpoena.
“We will absolutely comply with any and all subpoenas and have no issues meeting with law enforcement and helping in any way that we can,” the tweet read.
Bowers’ page, which has since been deleted, had a post hours before the shooting that read “screw your optics. I’m going in,” the New York Post reported.
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At a late-afternoon media briefing, an FBI official said that the suspect was someone not known to law enforcement.
Bob Jones, the special agent in charge of the FBI office in Pittsburgh, said that investigators also believe the suspect was acting alone, with his full motive as yet unclear.
The Associated Press and Fox News' Jeffrey Rubin contributed to this report.