Mass shooting suspect likely targeted Borderline bar on 'college night' because of disdain for

Mass shooting suspect likely targeted Borderline bar on ‘college night’ because of disdain for students


When Ian David Long opened fire inside the Borderline Bar and Grill nearly three years ago, he was seething with resentment against college-age people who he believed hated and belittled him for his military service in Afghanistan, according to a recently released report that provides the clearest picture yet of the possible motive behind Long’s mass shooting inside the club in Thousand Oaks.

The night the U.S. Marine veteran walked into the venue on Nov. 7, 2018, was “Country College Night,” and it probably was not a coincidence that he chose that event to open fire indiscriminately with hundreds of people inside, the 434-page report from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office concluded. It was based on interviews with dozens of witnesses, officers and deputies as well as family, friends and acquaintances of Long.

Authorities believe Long’s likely motive was disdain and disgust for civilians, particularly college students. His anger was fueled by his perception that he been slighted and belittled as a student at Cal State Northridge because of his service in the Marine Corps.

“Though we cannot say with absolute certainty that this was the suspect’s motive based on the information obtained and absent any further intelligence, this is the working theory that has been established,” said the report released Wednesday, which included the work of Ventura County sheriff’s detectives and FBI analysts.

Read more: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-07-03/mass-shooting-suspect-likely-targeted-borderline-bar-on-college-night-because-of-his-hatred-of-students