(AP) - Muslim and other faith leaders held a vigil late Tuesday near the scene where three people were killed in a shooting rampage in downtown Fresno.
Police say Kori Ali Muhammad on Tuesday singled out white victims and killed them at random because he believed there was a war going on between blacks and whites in America. Muhammad is black.
Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer says Muhammad shouted "God is great" in Arabic during his arrest and had posted on social media that he dislikes white people.
The police chief says it doesn't appear the suspect who fatally shot three people is connected to terrorism despite the statement that he made.
Dyer says Muhammad wanted to kill as many white people as possible before going to jail.
Dyer says "this is solely based on race."
Muhammad is in custody and is expected to be charged with four counts of murder. Three men were killed Tuesday and a 25-year-old security guard was killed last week.
The man suspected of killing three people in downtown Fresno had a long record of criminal charges in Sacramento.
Online Superior Court records show Muhammad was charged with more than a dozen felonies and misdemeanors between 1997 and 2004 using several aliases. They include forgery, domestic violence, criminal threats and driving under the influence.
On several occasions, Muhammad pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor within days of being charged. More serious crimes were dismissed and felonies were reduced to misdemeanors.
Muhammad spent years on probation in Sacramento County with periodic jail terms for probation violations.
Federal court records show Muhammad was charged in 2005 with possessing cocaine with intent to distribute.
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