Man arrested for murders in NJ and WA claims they were acts of terrorism

What seemed like a random murder and attempted robbery in a small northern New Jersey community may have been a deliberate act of terrorism.

NJ.com reports that the suspect in the murder of 19-year-old Brendan Tavlin told police that the killing was "vengeance" for the deaths of Muslims who died as a result of U.S. military action abroad in theaters such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

The killer's name is Ali Muhammad Brown, originally from Seattle. He is wanted for three other murders in Washington State. Brown is 29 years old and his other murders follow the same pattern as Tavlin's. Each victim was shot multiple times at night in an isolated location.

Brown claimed the murders were "just," because they did not take place in front of any women, children, or senior citizens.

Tevlin was shot 10 times as he waited for a light to change at an intersection in the town of West Orange, N.J. After the shooting, Brown moved Tevlin's lifeless body to the passenger seat and drove to an apartment complex before abandoning the vehicle and corpse.

The N.J. police who initially investigated the murder suggested the motive was theft rather than terrorism.

Brown's first murder occurred in Seattle, April 27. He was linked to that murder and two others through an analysis of bullet casings found at the scene of each killing, which tied them to the same gun.

Brown's other murders occurred in June, when he killed two men he met using an online application gay men use to connect.

Brown is currently being held in the Essex County Jail and his bail has been set at $5 million. Proceedings over whether or not to extradite Brown to Washington State are ongoing. If he is extradited, he could face the death penalty for his crimes.