Texas synagogue terrorist allegedly came to America to ‘find a bride’

On Saturday, an hours-long hostage situation unfolded at the Congregation Beth Israel synagogue in Colleyville, Texas.

In the days since, authorities have been working to establish what exactly motivated 44-year-old British citizen Malik Faisal Akram to come to America and carry out the crime.

On Wednesday, CBS Dallas reported that they had received a tip from a US official that Akram had originally come to America "to find a bride."

In an interview with Sky News, Akram's brother Gulbar asked how his brother, who he said had a criminal past, was able to acquire a visa for entry, and a gun in the United States in the first place.

The White House said in a press conference this week that the United States "did not have any derogatory information" about Akram that would have raised any red flags when he entered the country earlier this month.

As the Associated Press reports, Akram had been investigated as a potential terrorist threat in 2020, but the investigation was closed after MI5 deemed him not to pose any danger.

Akram, who interrupted a morning service and took Jewish people hostage at the Texas synagogue, was shot and killed following an hours-long standoff with authorities at around 9:15 pm local time on Saturday. All hostages at at the Congregation Beth Israel were released unharmed.

During the hostage-situation, he was heard demanding the release of Aafia Siddiqui, who is serving an 86-year prison term in the United States for attempting to shoot and kill US military officers while in custody in Afghanistan.

Meeting with press in Philadelphia, President Joe Biden said that Akram, who had reportedly been staying at a Dallas homeless shelter, obtained the weapon used on Saturday "on the street," possibly within the homeless community, but he was still getting more information, according to Fox News.

"This was an act of terror," Biden said, praising the FBI. Biden vowed that he would speak with the synagogue's rabbi on how his administration can support houses of worship with "the antisemitism that's ramping up."