WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Prosecutors say she helped California teens Cain Clark and Caleb Vazquez, who shot and killed three people at the Islamic Center of San Diego on May 18 before killing themselves.
Get RNS’ thoughtful, essential religion reporting every morning. Sign up for free!
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — The attorney for a North Carolina girl accused of helping two teens who carried out a deadly attack on a San Diego mosque says prosecutors haven’t provided enough information to allow him to defend his client.
Sarah Santiago, 17, is charged as an adult with three counts of murder by aiding and abetting and one count of conspiracy. Prosecutors say she helped California teens Cain Clark and Caleb Vazquez, who shot and killed three people at the Islamic Center of San Diego on May 18 before killing themselves.
Prosecutors in North Carolina allege Santiago agreed in advance to record and distribute a livestream of the attack made by the shooters and to disseminate their white-supremacist writings. She is also accused of buying a patch bearing a white-supremacist symbol and sending it to one of the gunmen to wear during the attack.
But prosecutors have yet to provide information about how or on what dates Santiago allegedly communicated with the shooters, or give details about the alleged agreement to record and disseminate the livestream, her attorney, Alan Doorasamy, said during a court hearing Monday.
Doorasamy filed a formal request for the information — known as a “bill of particulars” — on Friday, and the judge scheduled a hearing Wednesday on the motion. The motion does not seek to force the prosecutor’s office to turn over actual evidence, but rather to provide more information clarifying the allegations against Santiago.
Prosecutors have not yet responded to Doorasamy’s request. The Forsyth County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately return a call seeking comment Monday.
“She needs to know why she was arrested,” Doorasamy told The Associated Press in comments outside the courthouse Monday. “She’s a child. Of course she’s very scared and she’s worried, but she’s done nothing wrong.”
Santiago was arrested late last month and is being held without bail. Under North Carolina law, the aiding-and-abetting charges — in the event of a conviction — carry the same penalties as if the defendant had committed the attack.
Clark, 17, and Vazquez, 18, stormed the Islamic Center on May 18 before being driven back outside by a security guard who exchanged gunfire with them as he initiated a lockdown, helping to protect 140 children just steps away.
The pair killed the guard, Amin Abdullah, and two other men before taking their own lives in a nearby vehicle. They left behind rambling writings full of vitriol against a wide range of people, and cited the shooter who killed 51 people at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2019, as one of the models for their violence.
Clark and Vazquez also planned subsequent attacks on two other targets: a Jewish temple and Black students at a high school, authorities said. Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O’Neill credited the guard and other victims at the mosque with saving countless lives.
In a written statement, the Vazquez family said Caleb Vazquez was on the autism spectrum and had grown to resent parts of his identity. The family said it believed those factors, combined with exposure to hateful rhetoric online, contributed to his radicalization.
___
Associated Press reporter Gene Johnson in Seattle contributed to this report.
Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Link copied!
We value thoughtful conversation and feedback. However, we've made the difficult decision to temporarily pause comments because we’re unable to provide the level of moderation needed to keep the dialogue respectful and constructive.
We still want to hear from you. Please share your thoughts, feedback or questions with us at [email protected].
Deborah Caldwell, CEO and Publisher
Donate today| # | Наименование новости | Тональность | Информативность | Дата публикации |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lawyer says prosecutors haven't offered details of teen's alleged ties to San Diego mosque shooters | 0 | 8.94 | 21-09-2026 |
| 2 | Al menos cinco muertos tras un tiroteo en una mezquita de San Diego | 0 | 7.54 | 20-05-2026 |
| 3 | Oceanside vigil honors victims of Islamic Center shooting | 0 | 5.6 | 23-05-2026 |
| 4 | “The New Crusade”: What the San Diego Attackers’ Manifesto Reveals About Contemporary Radicalisation | 0 | 10.1 | 23-07-2026 |
| 5 | Три человека погибли в результате стрельбы в Калифорнии | 0 | 0 | 29-07-2019 |
| 6 | Police arrest 15-year-olds in shooting death of Cleveland high school student | 0 | 6.4 | 21-08-2026 |
| 7 | 12 and 14-year-old arrested over car break-in deadly shooting | 0 | 7 | 15-07-2026 |
| 8 | Charges filed, suspect at-large in Cahokia Heights killing | 0 | 10.38 | 30-07-2026 |
| 9 | Suspect in deadly shooting at Las Vegas Five Below arrested in California | 0 | 5 | 14-07-2026 |