The Austin Police Department has shared video and audio from the West Sixth Street shooting outside Buford’s last weekend that left three bystanders dead and more than a dozen others injured.
At a press conference Thursday, Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis walked through two 911 calls, police radio traffic audio, video from a parked car, surveillance video and body-worn camera footage from two of the three officers who fatally shot the suspect.
She also provided more details on the suspect, 53-year-old Ndiaga Diagne, and the weapons used in the attack. Diagne was fatally shot by police Sunday morning after they say he fired into Buford’s from an SUV, then exited the vehicle and fired into the crowd on West Sixth Street.
Davis said Diagne first fired at people standing outside Buford’s from a black Cadillac SUV using a semi-automatic handgun. Then Diagne parked nearby, left his car with an AR-15-style rifle and shot a pedestrian before walking back toward Buford’s. Both guns were legally purchased, police said.
Officers arrived on the scene and located the suspect at 2:03 a.m. on Sunday near the intersection of West Sixth and West Avenue, Davis said. Diagne fired in the direction of the officers. Police returned fire and struck Diagne multiple times before taking him into custody and requesting medical assistance.
Davis said Thursday that 19 people were hit by gunfire, including the suspect, an increase from previous statements. Two victims are still in the hospital, and one is in critical condition, she said.
Davis reiterated that APD had “no contacts” with Diagne. She said his only encounter with law enforcement was a mental health welfare check in 2022 conducted by a different agency.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed to KUT News earlier this week that Diagne was arrested in 2022 in Texas following a car crash. Records from civil court in Bexar County also show that a judge found Diagne had a “history or pattern of committing family violence” in 2022. That allegation did not prevent him from owning or possessing a firearm.
Diagne was a naturalized citizen who first came to the U.S. in 2000.
Police did not have updates on whether the shooting was connected to terrorism. FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Alex Doran previously said “there were indicators on the subject and in his vehicle that indicate potential nexus to terrorism.”
Video and audio show chaotic scene
Video from a parked car near the scene of the shooting shows Diagne walking in a parking lot carrying the AR-15-style rifle and wearing a hoodie that says “Property of Allah,” before raising the weapon at a pedestrian.
Davis had previously said he was wearing a shirt that featured Iranian symbolism on it when he shot into the bar.
Body camera footage from officers show them running along the street, asking for the location of the suspect and shouting at bystanders to get down before firing multiple times at Diagne. Diagne is seen falling onto the sidewalk.
Davis said the department released the footage to provide a clearer picture of a “chaotic scene.”
“We didn’t do this for the shock value. This is about being as transparent as we can,” she said. “It was important, again, to understand the events that led up to this officer involved shooting.”
The Thursday news conference comes less than a day after a vigil at UT Austin in support of the victims, including UT student Savitha Shan. Hundreds of students and community members gathered on the 40 Acres Wednesday night to remember Shan, as well as former Texas Tech student Ryder Harrington and Jorge Pederson, who were also killed in the shooting.
Travis County District Attorney José Garza said Wednesday he would not prosecute officers who shot Diagne. Garza called the officers “heroes” and said he would not take the case to a grand jury.
Davis said she wanted to thank Garza for “publicly exonerating and publicly acknowledging the heroism of our officers.”
APD also said in a statement it was “in the process of closing its criminal investigation into the officer-involved shooting.” The three officers who fired at Diagne are on administrative leave as part of APD protocol. Their names have not been released.
Watch the news conference below:
