The Tennessean is reporting that Mohammad Youssef Abdulazeez, the 24-year-old “practicing Muslim” from Hixson, Tennessee who killed 4 Marines in Chattanooga, Tennessee yesterday, was employed at Superior Essex, a manufacturer of wire and cables located in Franklin, Tennessee.
WWTN Radio in Nashville reported that Abdulazeez called in sick and did not report to work at Superior Essex on Monday and Tuesday.
Franklin, a suburb of Nashville, is located 120 miles northwest of Chattanooga, Tennessee, where Abdulazeez killed four unarmed Marines at a recruiting center yesterday. Abdulazeez was killed by law enforcement officials during the shootings.
Abdulazeez was born in Kuwait, and graduated from Red Bank High School in the Chattanooga area. In 2012 he graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a degree in electrical engineering. According to an online resume, he worked as an intern at the Tennessee Valley Authority, Mohawk Industries, and Global Trade Express before landing his job at Superior Essex.
Breitbart News contacted Superior Essex this morning and spoke with the security person who answered the phone.
“I have been instructed to say get off the property, no comment,” the security person told Breitbart News.
The security person advised Breitbart News to call back at 8 am central when “the powers that be” will be available for comment.
The Superior Essex voice mail system did not accept messages Breitbart News attempted to leave messages for senior management of Superior Essex.
According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, Abdulazeez trained in mixed martial arts, and was arrested on April 20, 2015 when he failed a sobriety test:
Abdulazeez’s father, also named Youssuf Abdulazeez, works as a soil engineering specialist for the Chattanooga Public Works Department, city records show. A co-worker who asked to remain anonymous said he was a nice man, hardworking, never caused anyone any trouble.The elder Abdulazeez has owned the family’s house at 1902 Colonial Way Circle since 2001, according to Hamilton County property records. On Thursday, he did not return a call on his cellphone.The younger Abdulazeez, who had lived in the Chattanooga area since he was in elementary school, has one incident on his criminal record. He was arrested by Chattanooga police on April 20 for driving under the influence after he was seen swerving while driving on M.L. King Boulevard around 2 a.m.The arresting officer noted the smell of alcohol and marijuana, and said Abdulazeez had a white powdery substance around his nose, according to the arrest report.Abdulazeez told police he had been around friends that night who’d been drinking and smoking. But he failed a sobriety test, was arrested and released on a $2,000 bond.Court records show that’s the only time Abdulazeez has been arrested in Hamilton County.
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Abdulazeez, a practicing Muslim, would sometimes get in trouble with the wrestling coach for fasting during the season because of the sport’s strict weight requirements, Smith added.Scott Schrader, one of the owners at Chattanooga Fight Factory who trained Abdulazeez in mixed martial arts, said the then-teenager would stop training every day at 6 p.m. to pray.….
In Abdulazeez’s senior photo in a Red Bank yearbook, he sports a tux and smiles into the camera, clean shaven and without the beard he wore when arrested for DUI this year. Under is name is a senior quote, attributed to “Hijabman,” an American-Pakistani activist.
“My name causes national security alerts,” the quote reads. “What does yours do?
UPDATE:
Breitbart News spoke with Superior Essex’s plant manager at its Franklin, Tennessee headquarters, Dave Marcaurele, Friday morning at 9:15 am central time to confirm details of Abdulazeez’s employment.
“We don’t have any comment at this point in time,” Marcaurele told Breitbart News
