Revealed: Brother of San Bernardino gunman is a decorated Navy veteran honored for his role in the war on terror
- Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, was named as the heavily armed gunman who massacred 14 at a conference center in California on Wednesday morning
- But his brother Syed Raheel Farook served in the Navy for four years
- The married father served as an information systems technician on the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise
- His awards include the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
By
KHALEDA RAHMAN FOR DAILYMAIL.COM and
RUTH STYLES IN SAN BERNARDINO FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
PUBLISHED: 20:03 EST, 3 December 2015 | UPDATED: 01:51 EST, 4 December 2015
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The brother of the San Bernardino gunman is a decorated Navy veteran who has been honored for his role in the war on terror.
Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, was named as the suspect who stormed the Inland Regional Center and massacred 14 people during a holiday party for county health employees on Wednesday.
But Farook’s older brother Syed Raheel Farook, a married father who goes by his middle name, has a number of ‘awards and decorations’ from his time in the Navy,
Buzzfeed reported.
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Syed Raheel Farook (pictured today left and right in a Facebook photo), the brother of San Bernardino gunman Syed Rizwan Farook, is a decorated Navy veteran
Raheel Farook (pictured with his wife Tatiana Farook) enlisted in the Navy in 2003 and served until 2007
Raheel Farook enlisted in the Navy in August 2003 and served until August 2007.
He was on duty on the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, where he served as an information systems technician and made at least one deployment to the Middle East.
Raheel served in the Surface Warfare Officer School Unit and the Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Illinois.
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He was awarded the National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, according to Buzzfeed.
He was also an enlisted surface warfare specialist and was awarded the Good Conduct Medal, records show.
Farook's brother, Syed Raheel Farook (pictured today, leaving his sister's house), served in the Navy from 2003 to 2007
Raheel Farook's awards include the National Defense Service Medal (pictured left, file photo) and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal (right, file photo)
Raheel Farook was on duty on the USS Enterprise, where he served as an information systems technician
Raheel and his wife Tatiana's now-deleted Facebook pages were filled with posts depicting a happy family life with their daughter.
According to his wife's LinkedIn page, she has been a student at a community college in Riverside, California, since January.
But neighbors paint a different picture.
Shery Medina, 47, told Daily Mail Online that police have shown up at their house in Corona, California, three times this year.
'There have been at least three incidents since January with the cops. Domestic violence. They argue. I'm like, oh god the cops are there again.
'I saw them on Saturday night. They were here and parked up the road. They never park right in front of the house. They sit further up and come down.
'When they have the issues, you see the cops show up. Other than that, I don't really talk to the guy or the lady.'
She added: 'I see him. He leaves with his shoulder strap briefcase. She doesn't leave too much but he does. He leaves at 5am every day. He comes home at 6.30 every time.
'He goes into the house and then he doesn't come out too much. They don't come out a lot. They don't do too much a lot.'
Neighbors also described the couple's garage had been decorated pink.
'It looked like a little salon in there, someone did hair,' said Kristin Lowe, 29. 'I thought they were just a normal family. I knew he had a little daughter.'
Man identifying self as relative of shooting suspect in shock
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Syed Farook's brother-in-law Farhan Khan (pictured) spoke at a press conference held at the offices of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Anaheim to say he was stunned to hear of his relative's involvement in the shooting
On Wednesday morning, Farook, 28, and his wife Tashfeen Malik, 27, stormed the conference and killed 14 people and injured a further 21.
The couple were killed hours later in a dramatic police shoot-out in suburban San Bernardino, California.
During the standoff with police hours after the morning's massacre, the husband and wife unleashed a barrage of bullets on officer, who returned fire, hitting the couple's rental Ford Expedition SUV with 380 rounds.
Both Farook and Malik were pronounced dead at the scene.
Shortly afterwards, Farook’s brother-in-law Farhan Khan spoke at a press conference, held at the Anaheim offices of the Council of American-Islamic Relations, on Wednesday evening, to express the family’s sadness over the shootings.
Khan, who is married to Farook’s sister, said he was stunned to hear of his relative's involvement in the shooting.
He said he had 'absolutely no idea why he would do this. I am shocked myself'.
He added: 'I just cannot express how sad I am for what happened today. I am very sad that people lost their lives. I am shock that something like this could happen.'
......but don't worry someone right now will come and say "those are what the cacs want you to believe.....the media is feeding you bullshyt".....
.....
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