Police today named the five officers who shot and killed Mohammad Youssef Abdulazeez to end the 24-year-old’s attack on two military sites in Chattanooga on July 16.
Officers Sean O’Brien, Grover Wilson, Jeff Lancaster, Keven Flanagan and Lucas Timmons fired their weapons.
Police also officially ruled that the officers were justified when they used deadly force that day, as Abdulazeez opened fire in an attack that the Federal Bureau of Investigation said was inspired by a foreign terrorist organization.
“The officers who fired their weapons on this tragic day did so in heroic defense of themselves and others,” Chief Fred Fletcher said in a statement. “There is no evidence that this use of force was anything other than justified. I am proud of their actions and humbled by the risks they faced.”
Abdulazeez, armed with an assault rifle, a handgun and numerous rounds of ammunition, began his attack at a military recruiting center on Lee Highway around 10:50 a.m. on July 16. He shot into the storefront offices from a rented Mustang convertible, sending Marine recruiters diving for cover and wounding Sgt. DeMonte Cheeley.