The man behind Monday’s horrific attack at Ohio State University has been identified as Abdul Razak Ali Artan.
Ohio law enforcement officials confirmed to NBC News Monday afternoon that Artan — an 18-year-old freshman at OSU — was the man who plowed a car into a crowd of people on campus and subsequently attacked passers-by with a butcher’s knife.
Ali Muhammad: #Ohio State University Suspect Who Launched Knife Attack Identified As 19-Year-Old #Somali Refugee https://t.co/aQTAAwl8aY pic.twitter.com/WZZtnvk4yM
— AlBawaba EG (@AlBawabaEG) November 28, 2016
#BREAKING US official identifies suspect in Ohio State attack that injured 9 as a man of Somali descent https://t.co/RrijWQCz1s pic.twitter.com/WfcBtfS0rz
— WPLG Local 10 News (@WPLGLocal10) November 28, 2016
Authorities had previously confirmed that the suspect was a Somali refugee, legally residing in Ohio.
Artan fled Somalia with his family in 2007 before landing in Pakistan. (RELATED: Trump Responds To Ohio State University Attack)
He moved to the United States in 2014, where he was granted legal, permanent status.
Ohio State Jihad Attacker Named Abdul Razak Ali Artan, Vehicle Used in Attack Belonged to Mohammad Ali https://t.co/sJq7byjKyP pic.twitter.com/tuAAUCPRE2
— ON FIRE NEWS (@onfirenews2) November 28, 2016
Furthermore, “The Lantern” — OSU’s campus newspaper — ran an interview with Artan just a few months ago, in which he criticized the school for not having Muslim prayer rooms on campus.
“I wanted to pray in the open, but I was kind of scared with everything going on in the media,” he stated. “I’m a Muslim, it’s not what the media portrays me to be.”
“I don’t blame them,” he continued. “It’s the media that put that picture in their heads so they’re just going to have it, and it’s going to make them feel uncomfortable.”
Artan’s motive is not yet known, yet authorities maintain that the attack was “done on purpose” and are treating the incident as a possible terrorist act.
This is a developing situation. Check back for updates.