Cain Clark & Caleb Vazquez id as San Diego mosque shooters at Islamic Center in Clairemont that left 5 dead including the 2 teen gunmen who left hate rhetoric behind as security guard Amin Abdullah who lost his life preventing further bloodshed as police now investigate runaway teen whose mom said her son was suicidal.
A mass shooting at a San Diego area mosque has left five dead including a ‘hero’ security guard and two teen shooters who apparently took their own lives.
The mayhem began at around 11.40 am Monday when shots rang out at the Islamic Center of San Diego in Clairemont.
Officers arrived on scene within four minutes, and ‘immediately’ observed the deceased victims outside the building, San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl said in a press conference.
A terrorist attack targeted the Islamic Center of San Diego.
The terrorist attack resulted in 3 Muslim worshippers murdered, including the mosque security guard who sacrificed himself to prevent an even larger massacre.
Photo and screenshot of The hero Amin Abdullah, the… pic.twitter.com/eQCNOTZw2z
— Warfare Analysis (@warfareanalysis) May 18, 2026
San Diego mosque attack probed as hate crime
Cain Clark, 17, and Caleb Vazquez, 18, since identified as the assailants were found deceased in a car nearby with apparent self-inflicted gunshot wounds after fleeing the scene, police said according to NBC News.
‘Because of the Islamic center’s location, we are considering it a hate crime until it’s not,’ Wahl said at a news conference.
Police were at the homes of the shooters’ relatives Monday evening and were probing ‘hate rhetoric’ the shooters allegedly left behind.
Runaway juvenile and discovered hate rhetoric
Social media described one of the teen boys, Cain Clark as a wrestler and senior at Madison High School.
Authorities said that police first received a call about a ‘runaway juvenile,’ with the teen’s mother reporting that her son was suicidal, that several of her weapons were missing and that her son was with a ‘companion’ dressed in camouflage.
Hero security guard saved lives at San Diego mosque
Authorities identified Amin Abdullah, a father of eight, as the ‘hero’ security guard killed protecting attendees at the mosque. Authorities have yet to release the identities of the two other individuals, described only as two male adults, whose bodies were found outside the place of worship.
According to Police Chief Scott Wahl, Abdullah ‘quickly sprang into action to protect others’, most likely averting further casualties.
‘At this point, I think it’s fair to say his actions were heroic,’ he continued. ‘Undoubtedly, he saved lives today.’
Faraj has been a licensed security guard since 2013.
Multiple people were taken to hospital after suffering gunshot wounds.
A hate crime rocks California: The perpetrators of the terrorist attack on the Islamic center have been identified as teenage terrorists Cain Clark, 17, and Caleb Vazquez, 18. pic.twitter.com/rEEq3lxic1
— JUSTICE FOREVER (@JusticeFre82308) May 19, 2026
Why was Islamic school and mosque targeted?
The Muslim place of worship is also home to the Al Rashid school, which was formerly known as the Islamic School of San Diego.
Kids in kindergarten through third grade attend the school.
‘The entire school is safe. All the kids, all the staff and the teachers are safe out of the Islamic Center,’ Imam Taha Hassane stated.
‘We have a few casualties, not confirmed yet. There is no threat at this moment, but we want everyone to stay away from the Islamic Center of San Diego.’
The Islamic Center of San Diego is the largest mosque in San Diego County, with around 5,000 members.
The shooting at the San Diego Islamic Center came at the beginning of Dhu’l-Hijja today, one of the holiest months on the Muslim calendar
It translates to ‘month of the pilgrimage’ and marks a time when millions of Muslims across the world embark on the Hajj, an annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
Not immediately clear is what led to the attack against the mosque and why and how the place of worship came to be targeted by the teen assailants.
