The infamous Ohio State University terrorist behind last year’s bloody altercation with students was devoted to Islamic extremism until the very end.
Abdul Raza Ali Artan, who drove his car into a group of students last November and then proceeded to stab people before being shot dead, left a final note that encouraged his family to cease their “moderate” approach to Islam while he confirmed his own conversion to radical Islamic extremism, Associated Press reports.
He also said he was angry by how Muslims are oppressed in Myanmar, although he did not draw any correlation between that grievance and his motivation for attacking his fellow university students.
Artan also related to his mother and father in a note put together by police investigators that he promised to “intercede for you in the day of Judgment.” The contents of the note were obtained Thursday through an open records request.
“My family stop being moderate Muslims,” reads the note penned by Artan and found next to his bed in the family home.
Artan also confirmed his own devotion to violent extremism. “In the end, I would like to say that I pledge my allegiance to ‘dawla,'” an Arabic word referring to one’s nation — most likely the Islamic State. “May Allah bless them.”
He wraps up the note by indicating that his “moderate mother” will inherit his earthly possessions.
Artan’s family indicated bewilderment when they first saw the note. According to the the Columbus, Ohio, lawyer who is representing the family, the writing was a source of great pain.
The lawyer, Bob Fitrakis, says the family still does not know what prompted Artan to attack the students at a campus where he was considered completely at ease with his surroundings and had just told the university paper how he was happy to attend OSU.
“The family is mystified by what happened. They’re absolutely clueless,” Fitrakis said Thursday.
FBI records provide some new information about Artan including a mysterious trip to Washington, D.C., where he visited a Wal-Mart store and bought some unknown items. One day prior to the terror strike, Artan went home early from his Home Depot job, excusing himself for being tired. His co-workers say Artan did not appear to be well-adjusted student as he frequently spoke of dropping out of OSU.
Early on Nov. 28, the day of the attack, Artan went to another Wal-Mart, this time in Columbus, to buy some knives, a tomato and a cucumber. The “suspect was pleasant and very polite during the checkout process,” the cashier reported.
When he got to the university, Artan drove his brother’s Honda Civic into a group of students and plowed into a concrete plant stand. He then exited the vehicle, reached for an eight-inch knife, and began stabbing those around him.
“I’m going to . . . kill you,” Artan told one female student, using an expletive, the records show.