THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Authorities trying to make sense of why a gunman killed 12 people at a Southern California bar are not publicly discussing what they’ve learned, but at least one social media post he made after beginning the massacre has emerged as an early focus. Two officials say Ian David Long, a 28-year-old former Marine, apparently paused in the middle of his deadly rampage to post to Instagram. Social media platforms have scrubbed that and any other posts following Wednesday night’s massacre. But one law enforcement official said Long posted about his mental state and whether people would believe he was sane. Authorities also were investigating whether he believed his former girlfriend would be at the Borderline Bar and Grill, said the official, who was briefed on the investigation but not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. A second law enforcement official, Ventura County Sheriff’s Capt. Garo Kuredjian, said that – based on time stamps – the gunman apparently stopped shooting inside the bar and posted to Instagram. Kuredjian said he didn’t know the content of any posts. Instagram and Facebook typically refuse to discuss individual accounts and did not respond to a request for comment. Furthermore, in a Facebook update attributed to Long by CNN, which said it was posted around the time of the shootings, he writes: “I hope people call me insane (laughing emojis).. wouldn’t that just be a big ball of irony? Yeah… I’m insane,… [Read full story]
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