The shooter who killed eight people at a shopping mall in Allen, Texas joined the U.S. Army over a decade ago but was discharged soon after joining, and the Pentagon said he is "not a veteran."
Mauricio Garcia joined the U.S. Army in 2008, but, according to Army spokeswoman Heather J. Hagan, he was terminated three months later and without completing his initial training.
Garcia was kicked out due to mental health concerns, an Army official told the Associated Press.
“He’s not a veteran," Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said Tuesday at a Pentagon briefing.
"Again, as you highlight from the Department of Veteran Affairs, according to federal regulations, this individual in terms of the time of service would not qualify as a veteran,” Ryder added.
In 2008, Garcia was given an “uncharacterized” discharge, a common designation for recruits who fail to make it through the first 180 days of training, a defense official told the AP.
This discharge designation is not considered dishonorable and would not set off red flags or require reports to law enforcement. Garcia had a total of eight weapons at the shooting, five remained in his vehicle, all of which he was able to purchase legally, according to the AP report.
The investigation into Garcia's background has revealed the 33-year-old had expressed white supremacist and neo-Nazi beliefs but had no criminal history before the shooting. His social media profile – on a Russian social networking site – showed him having Nazi tattoos on his arm and chest, including a swastika and the SS logo, according to multiple outlets.
The full AP report can be read here.
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