North Carolina Teen Indicted on Murder Charges for Livestreaming San Diego Mosque Shooting (August 31, 2026)

A 17-year-old North Carolina resident was indicted Monday, August 31, 2026, on three counts of murder and one count of conspiracy for allegedly aiding and abetting the May 18, 2026 shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego. The defendant, whose name was not disclosed at a news conference by Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O'Neill, was arrested last week, just before the start of the school year.

The shooting at the San Diego mosque killed three people: security guard Amin Abdullah, Mansour Kaziha, and Nader Awad, according to CBS News. The two shooters were identified as Cain Clark, 17, and Caleb Vazquez, 18. Per PBS NewsHour, a security guard who exchanged gunfire with the shooters drove them back outside and initiated a lockdown, helping protect 140 children inside the facility. The shooters took their own lives in a vehicle nearby.

Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O'Neill stated at a news conference in Winston-Salem, per PBS NewsHour: "The individual here, locally, was the person who was recording the livestream. She disseminated that information and she published their manifesto." The livestream was recorded using GoPro helmets worn by the gunmen, according to CBS News. O'Neill said the shooters had planned attacks on multiple targets: "Their plan that day was to commit mass murders not only at the mosque but to follow up at a local Jewish temple and finally at a predominantly African American high school there in town," per CBS News.

The shooters left behind writings full of vitriol against a wide range of people, per PBS NewsHour. According to CBS News, the document opens with an antisemitic diatribe, calls for a violent race war, and references "accelerationism," one of the most violent forms of white supremacist ideology that advocates the destruction of society. Per PBS NewsHour, the writings cited the shooter who killed 51 people at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2019, as one of their models for the violence. Authorities reported, per CBS News, that the teens had stockpiled 30 guns and a crossbow, weapons taken from Clark's parents.

Under North Carolina law, according to CBS News, "a person who aids and abets another to commit a crime is guilty of that crime ... just as if he or she had personally done all of the acts necessary to constitute the crime." Per PBS NewsHour, under North Carolina law, aiding-and-abetting charges carry the same penalties as if the defendant had committed the attack directly. O'Neill told CBS News: "The thought of her going back to school or with the weekend approaching, holy days approaching, we didn't know what she was capable of."

The San Diego County District Attorney's Office issued a statement on Monday, per CBS News: "The investigation into the horrific murders of three innocent people targeting the Islamic Center of San Diego includes identifying anyone who has potential criminal liability. We are fully aware of the prosecution by the Forsyth County District Attorney's Office in North Carolina in connection with the San Diego murders and we are grateful for the efforts by DA Jim O'Neill and his office."