Dallas shootings: Texas gunman identified as veteran, bomb materials found in home

Updated

Police have found bomb-making materials in the home of the man behind a sniper-style attack that killed five officers in Dallas, who has been identified as an Army veteran and "loner" driven to "kill white officers".

Meanwhile, thousands of peaceful protesters have taken to the streets in US cities in the wake of the shooting that authorities in the Texan city said was committed by 25-year-old Micah Johnson.

Police found bomb-making materials and other weaponry at his suburban home following the attack on Friday at the end of a Black Lives Matter protest.

"During the search of the suspect's home, detectives found bomb-making materials, ballistic vests, rifles, ammunition, and a personal journal of combat tactics," the Dallas Police Department said in an update on the probe into what marked the single biggest loss of life for law enforcement in America since 9/11.

Detectives were analysing the information contained in the journal, police said in an update that also confirmed he had no criminal history.

"Information provided through the course of the investigation indicates that the suspect was an Army veteran and others have identified him as a loner," it said.

Johnson served six years as a private in the army reserve and was in Afghanistan from November 2013 to July 2014, the Army said. He was a carpentry and masonry specialist.

There were no links to domestic or international terrorism and Johnson appeared to have acted alone, authorities said.

The Black Lives Matter rally was one of a number held across the US in response to two fatal police shootings of black men, in Minnesota and Louisiana, this week.

Five police officers were shot and killed and seven more injured when Johnson, in an elevated position, opened fire in the city's downtown area.

Some of the officers targeted were traffic police and were not wearing Kevlar body armour as they wanted to avoid presenting an aggressive posture at what was supposed to be a peaceful protest.

"We're hurting. Our profession is hurting. Dallas officers are hurting. We are heartbroken," Police Chief David Brown said.

Some officers were "ambushed" and shot, some in the back, he said.

Johnson engaged in a shoot-out for 45 minutes with police during the shootings, and was eventually killed by a bomb police sent in via robot.

Following the Facebook trail

A photo of Johnson with his clenched fist raised in the air has been circulated in US media, harking back to the days of the Black Panthers.

In the photo, Johnson was wearing a colourful African-style tunic against the backdrop of the red, black and green Pan-African flag, which became popular during the black liberation drive of the 1960s in the United States.

Facebook pages he "liked" included the New Black Panther Party (NBPP) and the Nation of Islam, organisations listed as hate groups by the Southern Poverty Law Centre, which studies such movements in the United States.

Both groups are known for expressing virulently anti-Semitic and anti-white views, the SPLC said in a statement.

Johnson's Facebook page referred to Richard Griffin, aka Professor Griff of the rap group Public Enemy, who the department said "embraces a radical form of Afrocentrism".

Another page he liked was a group called the African American Defence League.

One of that organisation's leaders is a self-described psychotherapist, poet and black nationalist named Mauricelm-Lei Millere.

Vast crowds march in US cities

Vast crowds marched in US cities including Atlanta, Georgia, Houston, New York, Texas and San Francisco, while scores protested outside the White House.

Addressing thousands of people at a prayer service in honour of the fallen officers, Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings urged Americans to "step up" to heal the country's racial wounds.

"We will not shy away from the very real fact that we as a city, as a state, as a nation are struggling with racial issues," he told the crowd.

Mr Rawlings echoed US President Barack Obama's message that black lives matter — and so do "blue" lives, those of police officers.

"We must step up our game and approach complicated issues in a different way," Mr Rawlings said. "And race is complicated."

Chief Brown earlier told a press conference Johnson had "said he was upset about Black Lives Matter".

"He said he was upset about the recent police shootings. The suspect said he was upset at white people. The suspect stated he wanted to kill white people, especially white officers," Chief Brown said.

"The suspect stated he was not affiliated with any groups and he stated that he did this alone."

Mr Obama will cut short a trip to Europe, which includes NATO talks, to travel to Dallas next week, the White House said.

"The President has accepted an invitation from Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings to travel to Dallas early next week," spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement, adding that Mr Obama would return to the United States on Sunday night — one day ahead of schedule.

ABC/wires

Topics: murder-and-manslaughter, race-relations, police, crime, law-crime-and-justice, united-states

First posted