How did man charged in fatal Jewish museum shooting get gun on plane from Chicago

The gun that Chicagoan Elias Rodriguez would use on Wednesday night to fire 21 shots during an ambush outside the Capitol Jewish Museum was not a secret weapon.

He checked his legally purchased weapon in his carry-on bag as the rules allow.

Federal law enforcement officials said the Chicago man bought his 9mm pistol in Illinois five years ago. On Tuesday, they said he flew United Airlines from O'Hare International Airport to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport near Washington D.C.

When he was arrested following the shooting, the man showed police his Illinois driver's license and Firearm Owners Identification Card, telling them "he did it."

One motive was shouted and repeated by him as he was arrested, officials said. "Free, free, Palestine," the shooter yelled as he was still in front of the museum, where witnesses and federal agents said he opened fire on departing attendees.

A LinkedIn profile shows the 31-year-old works for the American Osteopathic Information Association as a full-time administrative specialist, the AOIA confirmed.

A profile on Historymakers, a Chicago "website repository for the Black experience," lists him as an oral history researcher with an English degree from the University of Illinois Chicago who enjoys reading and writing fiction, live music, film and exploring new places.

But for this man, who is now in federal custody in Washington and has confessed to two possible hate crime murders, officials say the question of his motive is not certain.

He was quoted several years ago in the socialist publication "Liberation" and pictured at a 2017 protest honoring the anniversary of Laquan McDonald's shooting death by Chicago police.

DePaul professor and terrorism expert Tom Mockaitis said the man doesn't appear to have been on law enforcement radar before Wednesday night.

"For the authorities, it's almost impossible," said Mockaitis.

"What is not impossible is for the people who know the individual to spot warning signs," he said. "I've been raising this point for a very long time, and it's very frustrating and we still aren't doing it."

"We train parents, church leaders, synagogue leaders, mosque leaders, family members, everybody how to spot the signs of drug and alcohol abuse," he said.

What is so hard about teaching them to spot the warning signs of radicalization?

"Because they're going to see it before anybody else does," Prof. Mockaitis adds.

The FBI calls this "targeted terrorism" and federal agents are analyzing a declaration that may have been written by Rodriguez. The pronouncement condemns Israel's military campaign in Gaza and American government support.

The composition doesn't mention Wednesday night's attack but does advocate "armed action."