FBI Opens Domestic Terrorism Investigation, Asks Facebook for Info on Gilroy Shooter

Update, 3:30 p.m. Wednesday:
The FBI on Wednesday clarified a statement made to KQED regarding subpoenaing Facebook for information about an Instagram account potentially linked to the Gilroy Garlic Festival shooter.

On Tuesday, the FBI told KQED it had served Facebook with a subpoena. On Wednesday, an FBI spokesperson clarified that the agency had served Facebook with an emergency disclosure request, which does not carry the legal weight of a subpoena, and that Facebook had complied with that request.

The FBI says it has determined the identity of the owner of the Instagram account, but would not confirm the identity of that person.

Original post, 4:30 p.m. Tuesday:
The FBI is launching a domestic terrorism investigation into the shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Festival, which killed three people, including two children, FBI Special Agent John Bennett announced at a press conference Tuesday.

"We have not made a final investigative conclusion into the motive of the shooter," said Bennett. "However, we have uncovered evidence throughout the course of our investigation that the shooter was exploring violent ideologies."

The FBI is continuing their investigation into the shooter's digital media to determine which of several "fractured ideologies" the shooter may have aligned himself with.

Bennett also told KQED that the FBI is subpoenaing Facebook for information about an Instagram account that is potentially linked to the shooter and that contains a reference to white nationalist literature.

For a shooting to be considered domestic terrorism it must involve a potential violation of federal law and a potential ideological motive, said Bennett. Opening a full investigation grants the FBI broader powers, including issuing search warrants, he added.

"Most people think that when we’re involved in a police cooperation investigation, like we had going with the Gilroy Police Department, that we could just bring whatever legal authority or tools to the fight, but that’s not the case,” Bennett said. “We have to have predicated investigations, which now allows us to send out subpoenas and ask for search warrants, go to a federal judge and establish probable cause and collect evidence for a federal investigation."

Bennett also confirmed that the Gilroy shooter did not leave a manifesto, but that investigators have found a potential "target list" that includes religious groups, organizations from both political parties, federal buildings and courthouses, in addition to the Garlic Festival.

Gilroy Police Chief Scot Smithee said Tuesday that the 19-year old suspect fired 39 rounds from an AK-47 style rifle. The suspect was shot multiple times by officers, but his cause of death was ruled to be from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to the Santa Clara County medical examiner's office.

The family of the suspected gunman, Santino William Legan, released a statement Tuesday through their attorney, expressing their horror at the shooting and apologizing to victims and community.

"We have never and would never condone the hateful thoughts and ideologies that led to this event, and it is impossible to reconcile this with the son we thought we knew," they said. "Our son is gone, and we will forever have unanswered questions as to how or why any of this has happened."

“It’s not unusual for people like this to not communicate their intentions or ideology,” said Bennett. “We are, through interviews and investigative techniques, trying to put together a sequence of events as to where this person has been, as far back as six months or a year, and trying to understand where he was, who was he talking with, what changes in somebody’s mind.”

During the press conference, Bennett thanked the community of Gilroy for their support and strength. “Gilroy strong is not just a T-shirt. It is who you are,” he said, referring to the slogan that has graced T-shirts, signs and memorials in the aftermath of the shooting. “We have been embedded here for several days now and we have seen firsthand how all of you have come together to support one another and the police departments.”

The FBI response team has concluded their investigation of the crime scene. However it has not yet been reopened to the public.

Bay City News contributed to this story.