By late Saturday, the FBI was jockeying to take complete control over the investigation of the El Paso Walmart shooting, according to federal law enforcement sources.
It was expected El Paso Police and Texas officials would cede control of the probe to the FBI by Sunday, sources said. El Paso Police and Texas officials would continue to assist the FBI with the homicide portions of the investigations, according to insiders.
El Paso police Chief Gregory K. Allen said at an evening news conference that the crime appears to have “a nexus at this point in time to a hate crime.”
However FBI special agent in charge of the El Paso office, Emmerson Buie, said it was too early to determine if this was indeed a hate crime and that the investigation into a motive continued.
“We’re reviewing all the evidence,” Buie said.
Allen said the shooting was reported at 10:39 a.m., and police were on-scene six minutes later.
Authorities initially said a second person was taken into custody, but later said they believe only one person was responsible. READ MORE: