The ex-wife of the gunman who drove a pickup truck into a Detroit-area synagogue informed police that he was distraught and suicidal in a 911 call made around the time of the assault, according to a television station report on Monday.
Timeline of the Attack and Warning
The call to Dearborn Heights police occurred last Thursday, coinciding with Ayman Ghazali's attack on Temple Israel and its early childhood learning center in West Bloomfield Township, as reported by WXYZ-TV. The FBI stated that Ghazali exchanged gunfire with a security guard and subsequently took his own life inside the vehicle, which also caught fire during the incident.
Details from the 911 Recording
In the 911 call, obtained by WXYZ, Ghazali's ex-wife expressed deep concern for his mental state, noting he was a naturalized U.S. citizen who had recently lost family members in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon on March 5. A memorial service was held for them at the Islamic Institute of America in Dearborn Heights.
She told police, "I feel like he's really upset" and later added, "He's like suicidal", describing his voice as unstable. She emphasized her worry by saying, "I just want to make sure he's OK", but clarified she did not know if he possessed any weapons. There was no indication in the call that she was aware he had targeted the synagogue, located approximately 25 miles from his home.
Police Response and Investigation Findings
Dearborn Heights police responded to Ghazali's residence after the call but found no one present. The FBI revealed that Ghazali had waited in his vehicle outside the synagogue for two hours before ramming it into the building, where dozens of children were inside at the time. Fortunately, no children were injured in the attack.
In a related development, Israel's military announced on Sunday that Ghazali's brother, Ibrahim Ghazali, who was killed in the recent airstrike, served as a Hezbollah commander in Lebanon. The FBI's Detroit office, which is leading the investigation into the synagogue attack, declined to comment on this description.
