Garland Police Chief Mitch Bates provided updates and clarified misinformation on the May 3 shooting at the Draw the Prophet event at the Curtis Culwell Center.
According to Bates, the number of attendees, including media inside the event, was originally reported as 200, but was closer to 150.
Additionally, it was first reported that one Garland Police Department officer, armed with his duty pistol, killed suspects, Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi. In actuality, that officer wounded the suspects and within seconds four SWAT team members engaged the suspects and killed them while they continued their effort to attack.
It was also originally reported that the GPD officer and Garland ISD security officer were seated in a police car when the suspects approached in a vehicle. The police officer and GISD officer were actually standing outside the patrol car when the suspects’ vehicle stopped and they exited the vehicle and immediately began firing assault rifles at the Garland officer and GISD officer.
After the shooting, the GPD bomb unit, the ATF, the FBI bomb unit, the Plano and Irving Police Department bomb units and the DFW Airport bomb unit spent several hours searching the scene for explosive devices in the vehicle and on the suspects’ bodies. None were found, but additional weapons and hundreds of rounds of ammunition were discovered on the suspects’ bodies and in their vehicle.
Bates expressed pride in the Garland Police Department.
“I could not be more proud of the men and women of the Garland Police Department. Those who participated in the event security, those who participated in the planning and preparation for this event, those in our 911 communication center who handled all the emergency calls for this event while simultaneously handling all the other calls for this entire city and those who responded in the aftermath to conduct the investigation and collect the physical evidence,” Bates said. “But, most deserving of our praise are the five Garland police officers and the Garland ISD security officer who put their own lives at great risk by responding to this attack and by engaging the enemy in defense of our community of Garland, our great state of Texas and our great nation.”
He called the officers, whose names have not been released for safety reasons, heroes and added that when violence and danger occurs, police officers run toward it instead of away from it.
The police chief also addressed reports that GPD might have had information beforehand that Elton Simpson and Nadir Soofi may attack this event.
“These reports are not accurate,” he said. “No one, not the Garland Police Department, the FBI, the Texas DPS nor any other agency had any information prior to the event that either suspect may target this event.”
Some accounts indicated that a bulletin was sent to GPD about Elton Simpson being a potential threat to the event and Bates said that is also inaccurate.
He said that on the Friday before the event, the FBI issued a bulletin stating that there were no known credible threats and that the event, based on its nature, was a potential target.
In response to reports that an email bulletin was sent out on the day of the event, Bates said that a general information email regarding Simpson’s past was sent out, but it contained no mention of him being a threat to the event. He added that no agencies, including the FBI and Texas DPS were aware of the informational email prior to the shooting.