An online fundraiser for the security guard hailed by law enforcement for his decisive actions during the shooting at a California mosque has drawn an extraordinary outpouring of financial support for his family in less than 24 hours.
According to the Daily Caller, San Diego Police credit Amin Abdullah, a security guard at the Islamic Center of San Diego who was killed in the attack, with playing a pivotal role in minimizing the carnage after two teenage gunmen opened fire at the mosque. On LaunchGood, a Muslim-oriented alternative to crowdfunding platforms such as GoFundMe and GiveSendGo, a campaign for Abdullahs widow and eight children had amassed more than $1.6 million at the time of reporting.
Amin put himself between the gunmen and everyone inside, the fundraising page for Abdullahs family states. Teachers, staff, and more than a dozen children were walked safely out of that building by police that afternoon, hand in hand. They are alive because Amin did his job. He paid for that with his life. The language underscores a reality conservatives have long emphasized: when evil strikes, it is often an armed, trained citizen or guardnot a distant bureaucracywho stands between innocents and slaughter.
Dashcam footage posted on X appears to show the alleged assailants, 17-year-old Cain Clark and 18-year-old Caleb Vazquez, firing at the Islamic Center, the largest mosque in San Diego County, and apparently taking return fire from Abdullah. Multiple photographs on Abdullahs Facebook page depict him in a tactical vest, carrying a semiautomatic pistol and several magazines, a visual reminder of the deterrent power of lawful, responsible firearm use.
San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl confirmed at a Monday press conference that Abdullah, one of three people killed in the attack, played a pivotal role in preventing a far higher death toll. We do believe the security guard was able to help at least minimize the situation to the front area of the mosque, Wahl told reporters.
At this point, I think its fair to say his actions were heroic, Wahl added. Undoubtedly, he saved lives today. Clark and Vazquez were later discovered a few blocks from the mosque with self-inflicted gunshot wounds, having apparently taken their own lives after the assault.
In a subsequent briefing, Wahl said the mother of one suspect had called police to report her son as a runaway and suicidal, later adding that firearms and her vehicle were missing. The episode echoes a March incident in West Bloomfield, Michigan, where an armed security guard at a synagogue stopped a would-be active shooterwhose brother was a Hezbollah commander killed by Israeli forces in Lebanonbefore the attacker ultimately committed suicide, reinforcing the argument that armed security remains a critical line of defense for houses of worship in an increasingly dangerous world.
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