What we know about Ndiaga Diagne, 6th Street shooting suspect

Austin police identified Ndiaga Diagne, 53, as the lone suspect in the mass shooting on West Sixth Street early Sunday. The shooting left three people dead — including Diagne — and 14 others injured.

Not much is known publicly about the alleged shooter or why he carried out the attack — Austin’s deadliest mass shooting in 60 years — but authorities have release some details. 

Diagne, a native of Senegal, came to the U.S. in March 2000 on a tourist visa, according to the Department of Homeland Security. He became a lawful permanent resident in June 2006 based on a marriage to a U.S. citizen and then naturalized as a U.S. citizen in April 2013, the agency said.

In 2022, he was arrested in Texas in connection to a vehicle collision, although DHS did not specify the location of the arrest or which agency arrested Diagne. Aside from that, Diagne doesn’t appear to have a criminal history in the state.

Officials have not determined a motive, but an FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating the shooting as a possible act of terrorism. 

Alex Doran, acting special agent in charge of the FBI’s San Antonio field office, said at a Sunday morning press briefing that evidence recovered from Diagne’s person and vehicle suggests a possible link to extremism. He did not say what those materials were.

Local authorities confirmed that Diagne was wearing clothing at the time of the shooting that bore the words “Property of Allah” and an image of the Iranian flag, raising questions about whether Diagne may have been motivated by the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran a day earlier. 

Still, Doran stressed that it was “way too early to determine motivation.”

The attack began just before 2 a.m. outside Buford’s bar in the 700 block of West Sixth Street, according to Police Chief Lisa Davis.

Investigators said Diagne drove a large SUV around the block multiple times before stopping in front of the bar, activating his hazard lights and opening fire on the bar patio and front sidewalk through his car window. 

He then drove west on Sixth Street, parked on Wood Street and walked east along the corridor carrying what police described as an assault rifle, firing at pedestrians as he moved.

Officers who were already stationed nearby responded within moments to reports of an active shooter and confronted Diagne along Sixth Street. Police fatally shot him.

Three people, including Diagne, died. Fourteen others were injured, three of them critically.

The shooting occurred one day after joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, which prompted heightened security concerns nationwide.

Authorities have not said whether those events played any role in the attack. Doran, the FBI official, declined to speculate about a connection, reiterating that investigators are still working to determine Diagne’s motive.

PHOTOS: Aftermath of West 6th Street mass shooting

In a statement condemning the shooting, Gov. Greg Abbott warned that “anyone who might use the current conflict in the Middle East to threaten Texans or critical infrastructure” would be met “with decisive and overwhelming force.”

Abbott noted that he had directed increased patrols and security measures statewide due to the international conflict. 

Investigators executed a search warrant Sunday at a home in Pflugerville linked to a possible relative of Diagne. Authorities have not disclosed what, if anything, was seized.

Law enforcement personnel from the Austin Police Department, the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were stationed at the residence on and off for much of the day Sunday. 

Neighbors in the Pflugerville subdivision where investigators executed a search warrant said they were unaware of any prior disturbances at the home.

Todd Bruder, a U.S. Navy veteran who has lived in the area since 2015, said he once spoke with a woman at the Pflugerville residence while searching for a lost dog. He described her as friendly.

“I’m shocked that this happened here,” Bruder said.

Eddie Garcia, president of the neighborhood homeowners association, said he was not aware of any previous issues at the property, and that it is common for residents to keep to themselves.

“We’ve never had any issues like this before,” Garcia said. “We’re all neighbors and respect each other, but we are also private and keep to ourselves.”

Authorities emphasized that the investigation remains active. Detectives are reviewing surveillance footage, interviewing witnesses and analyzing evidence collected from the scene, Diagne’s vehicle and possibly material from the Pflugerville home and a vehicle parked in its driveway.

Officials have said they will provide additional information as the investigation develops, including any findings related to motive and victim identities.

Senegal is a West African country on the westernmost point of the continent. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean on the west and the countries of Mauritania, Mali and Guinea/Guinea-Bissau. 

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include information provided by federal authorities related to Diagne.