29-year-old Gavin Eugene Long, who has been identified as the Baton Rouge shooter who killed three police officers and wounded three others this Sunday morning, claimed in a previously uploaded YouTube video that he was unaffiliated with any group.
After Long’s identity was revealed as the Baton Rouge shooter, his past social media posts condemning police brutality and sympathizing with Black Lives Matter came to light, prompting some to tie Long, who called himself Cosmo Setepenra on social media, to the Black Lives Matter movement. An email obtained by BuzzFeed revealed a detailed commentary by Long on the killing of 37-year-old Alton Sterling, who was killed by Baton Rouge police two weeks ago:
“We (the people) have the right to see the video no matter what happened,” Long wrote. “We can’t just take their word! If 2 body cameras fell off then Let us see the videos with the body Cameras falling off (IF THAT’S WHAT REALLY HAPPENED).”
An email sent on July 11th from Gavin Long under his pen name Cosmo Setepenra: pic.twitter.com/wmjvzenmGL
— Talal Ansari (@TalalNAnsari) July 17, 2016
However, in a video Long posted to his YouTube page on July 8, he loudly and repeatedly stated he had no affiliation to any group or agenda other than his own.
“I’m not affiliated with the black business school… any of my friends, any of my associations, those are just associations, I’m not affiliated with it. Yeah, I was also a Nation of Islam member. I’m not affiliated with it,” Long said. “I thought my own thoughts, I made my own decisions. I’m the one.”
On Sunday morning, Long opened fire on police officers in Baton Rouge, killing police officers Montrell Jackson, Brad Garafola, and Matthew Gerald. Three other officers were wounded.
Jackson, a father of three, recently posted a message to Facebook after the killings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, as well as the killings of the five police officers in Dallas, encouraging protesters and police to lower barriers and try to understand each other.
“I personally want to send prayers out to everyone directly affected by this tragedy. These are trying times. Please don’t let hate infect your heart,” Jackson wrote on July 8. “This city MUST and WILL get better. I’m working in these streets so any protesters, officers, friends, family, or whoever, if you see me and need a hug or want to say a prayer. I got you.”
Tom Cahill is a writer for US Uncut based in the Pacific Northwest. He specializes in coverage of political, economic, and environmental news. You can contact him via email at tom.v.cahill@gmail.com.
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