Texas Mall Shooter Received Firearms Training Working as Security Guard
Allen Texas May 10th, 2023
Mauricio Garcia — the 33-year-old who has been identified as the gunman in the Allen, Texas, outlet mall shooting, according to a senior law enforcement source — received firearms training for part of his work as a security officer, according to an official database.
The gunman who killed at least eight people and wounded a half-dozen more at a Dallas-area outlet mall is a suspected neo-Nazi sympathizer.
While the investigation remains ongoing and authorities have not zeroed in on a specific motive, the source said the deceased shooter was found with an insignia on his clothing that read “RWDS,” which authorities believe may stand for “Right Wing Death Squad.”
As the Southern Poverty Law Center, an organization that monitors and reports on extremism, has noted in the past, some members of extremist groups have been seen in recent years with patches bearing the same letters.
Garcia was approved to work as a commissioned security guard in Texas from April 2016 until April 2020, when his license expired, according to the Texas Online Private Security database, maintained by the Texas Department of Public Safety.
His profile shows he worked for at least three security companies. None of those companies immediately responded to requests for comment.
According to the database, Garcia received Level II and Level III security training. The former covers security laws in Texas; the latter, which is required for all commissioned security officers in Texas, includes firearm training and the demonstration of firearm proficiency, according to Jonah Nathan, vice president of Ranger Guard, a security guard service in Texas not affiliated with Garcia’s employers.
In 2018, Garcia also completed a separate firearms proficiency training course, which requires six hours of continuing education, according to the Texas DPS database.
Private security guards in Texas undergo background checks and are disqualified if they have committed certain crimes, such as assault, burglary or sexual offenses, among others, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety website and state codes.
They are also disqualified if they have been dishonorably discharged from the US military; have been found incompetent by a court of law; or have been required to register as a sex offender. It’s unclear why Garcia’s license expired.
A police officer killed the gunman outside the outlet mall after he carried out the massacre Saturday, according to the Allen police chief. The shooting left at least least eight people dead and seven others wounded.
