The heavily armed man who killed one Fargo police officer and wounded two as they were investigating a traffic stop had been interviewed about his guns in 2021 after the FBI received a tip.
The FBI and Fargo Police Department in a joint statement Thursday that the FBI received an anonymous tip about Mohamad Barakat in July 2021. The statement says the tip expressed concern about his mental state and noted he had a significant number of firearms. The FBI forwarded the information to the Fargo Police Department. The statement says detectives interviewed Barakat, and he denied any ill intent.
Barakat killed 23 year old Jake Wallin and wounded Officers Andrew Dotas and Tyler Hawes in an ambush after they responded to a routine traffic crash July 14. A woman was also shot and injured before another officer fatally shot Barakat, stopping what authorities believe could have been a much bigger attack.
A search of Barakat’s apartment after the shooting revealed that over the last five years, he had searched the internet for terms including “kill fast,” “explosive ammo” and “mass shooting events,” state Attorney General Drew Wrigley said last week. On the night before the shooting, Barakat also searched for “area events where there are crowds,” which brought up a news article with the headline “Thousands enjoy first day of Downtown Fargo Street Fair.”
The FBI and Fargo police say no further action could be taken since there was no evidence of an imminent threat.
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