Texas Gov. Rick Perry is calling on the Obama administration to take a deeper look into a beheading at a food plant in Oklahoma, noting that it appears more than simply an instance of workplace crime but "an act of violence associated with terrorism,"
Politico reports.
Perry spoke on "Fox and Friends" Monday, questioning the workplace violence label that he says the White House is putting on the incident, even as it remains unclear if the alleged assailant, Alton Nolen, 30, had any ties with radical Islamists abroad.
"I think Americans are confused about what this is," Perry told host Steve Doocy. "This is a clear case of an individual going in and doing something that does not meet their definition of 'workplace violence,' so I think any rational thinking American is going to look at this and go, 'This is more than just normal workplace violence.' "
The FBI is looking into the motive behind Nolen's violent attack, which left one woman, Colleen Hufford, 54, dead, and her colleague Traci Johnson, 43, hospitalized with multiple wounds, CNN reported.
On Facebook, Nolen reportedly went by the name Jah'Keem Yisrael,
CNN said, quoting the mother of the beheading victim. That social media page, where he had 1,470 "friends," contains photos of fighters with artillery including a rocket-propelled grenade launcher and warns readers that "Sharia law is coming." It also mentions Islam although nothing that could have tipped police off to the violent acts he allegedly committed inside a Vaughan Foods plant.
Nolen's family and friends have continued to contend that he was not a violent person and such actions seemed out of character, and his own mother apologized for his actions on video. Meanwhile, police in Moore, Oklahoma, prepared to charge Nolen on Monday with murder and assault with a deadly weapon, the
Los Angeles Times reported.
Perry noted the strong resemblance to grisly beheadings carried out by Islamic State militants that have been shared on social media. He says the connection seems strong. “At some point in time, the administration does have to address this as what it appears to many people that it is — and that is an act of violence that is associated with terrorism."