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The accused gunman arrived in court Monday in a wheelchair. Authorities say Robert Bowers, 46, stormed into the Tree of Life Congregation Synagogue in the affluent Squirrel Hill neighborhood shouting hate for Jews and killing worshipers in a 20-minute attack. Police were notified of the shooting at 9:54 a.m. ET, Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Wendell Hissrich said.
Robert Bowers, a 46-year-old long-haul trucker, was charged late Saturday with 29 federal counts, including hate crimes. He had posted anti-Semitic rants on social media, including Gab, a fringe website favored by white nationalists.
It appears Bowers authored a social media post before the shooting accusing the organization HIAS, the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, of bringing "invaders in that kill our people." It's unclear who Bowers meant when saying "our people." He also wrote about a number of conspiracy theories and his opposition to the migrant caravan. He was interested in QAnon theory and disliked Donald Trump.
We also discuss Cesar Sayoc's background and sketchy choices to send ineffective pipe bombs through the mail.