Chilling police audio shows the harrowing moments cops descend on the scene of San Diego mosque shooting

By JOE HUTCHISON, US SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 06:03, 19 May 2026 | Updated: 06:42, 19 May 2026 Distressing police audio has revealed what happened on the ground as cops descended on the San Diego mosque shooting that left three people dead.  Officers with the city's police department responded to the Islamic Center of San Diego after shots rang out on Monday. Amongst the chaos, police searched for the two teenage gunman while also pulling victims away from the scene to be given life saving measures, radio chatter revealed.  'We got two more people down on the north side of the [mosque] here', one officer called in. Another officer then responded that there was 'two assailants, one with an automatic weapon, one with a shotgun'. Officers then went back and forth explaining their positions around the building and what they planned to do next. The hunt for the two suspects then played out over the airwaves as officers tried to pinpoint their exact location. 'Two white males, they are wearing all camo' one officer could be heard saying as they located the shooters. Officers with the city's police department responded to the Islamic Center of San Diego after shots rang out A vehicle used by the suspects is seen here outside of the mosque on Monday 'We're going to grab these two victims' one officer called, adding that they needed 'life saving measures'. The suspects were then found dead from self-inflicted gunshot wounds after the rampage outside the house of worship.  They were identified by police sources as Cain Clark, 17, and Caleb Vazquez, 18, according to NBC News. Officials also told CNN that hate speech was inscribed on one of the weapons used in the attack. Authorities said at a Monday night news conference that police first received a call about a 'runaway juvenile'.  A mother of one of the teens reported that her son was suicidal, and several of her weapons were missing. She had also found a note that her son left behind. 'That began to trigger a larger threat assessment picture,' Police Chief Scott Wahl said.  Officials told CNN that hate speech was inscribed on one of the weapons used in the attack As police arrived, gunshots rang out a few blocks away where a landscaper was shot at but uninjured Police described both teens as being dressed in 'camo fatigue' and referred to the car they used as a 2018 BMW X1 SUV, on their radios shortly after the incident. One officer said on the radio that guns 'stolen from the house' included 'a 9mm handgun, a shotgun and a mini 14'. Police used license plate readers to try to find the teens, dispatched authorities to a mall and alerted Madison High School, where at least one suspect was a student, Wahl said.  Officers were still interviewing the mother about places the teens might be when they received reports of a shooting at the mosque. As police arrived, gunshots rang out a few blocks away where a landscaper was shot at but uninjured.  There was no specific threat made against the mosque but authorities found evidence that the suspects engaged in 'hate rhetoric,' Wahl said.  Panicked parents arrived at the scene to retrieve their children after two teenage gunmen opened fire  One of those who was killed was security guard Amin Abdullah, a father of eight children. His friend Anees Faraj, a fellow security guard at the mosque who was not working, described the events as shocking and confirmed Amin as the guard who died. Police Chief Wahl said that Amin and his actions helped prevent an even deadlier attack.  On Monday night Wahl said: 'His actions were heroic and he undoubtedly saved lives today.' The imam of the mosque confirmed that no children were injured during the shooting. The place of worship is also home to the Al Rashid school. Kids in kindergarten through third grade attend the school.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.