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Brother of San Bernardino shooter accused of domestic violence

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Police in Corona are investigating an allegation of domestic violence by the brother of one of the San Bernardino shooters.

Officers were called to the home of Syed Raheel Farook in the 1700 block of Forum Way about 2:30 p.m. Saturday after the victim, an unidentified woman, reported a domestic disturbance at the residence, said Corona police Sgt. Paul Mercado.

Detectives returned to the home Monday afternoon for follow-up interviews. On Tuesday, they forwarded the case to Riverside County prosecutors for a possible charge of misdemeanor domestic battery, Mercado said.

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A spokesman for the Riverside County District Attorney’s office confirmed the office is reviewing the case.

Farook, 30, has not been arrested or charged. He could not be reached for comment.

Farook is the older brother of Syed Rizwan Farook who, with his wife Tashfeen Malik, stormed into San Bernardino’s Inland Regional Center on Wednesday and sprayed gunfire on those gathered for a holiday party. The rampage left 14 people dead and 21 injured.

In the hours after the massacre, some online media reports incorrectly identified one of the assailants as Syed Raheel Farook and posted images from his social media accounts. Those reports were later retracted.

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From 2003 to 2007, Farook served in the U.S. Navy, mostly on the USS Enterprise, according to military records.

Allegations of domestic violence were raised during Farook’s parents divorce, according to court papers reviewed by The Times.

In multiple requests for domestic-violence protection, Farook’s mother detailed the maltreatment she said she encountered and that her children witnessed: Her husband had once drunkenly dropped a TV on her. Another time, he pushed her toward a car. After a drunken slumber, he shouted expletives and threw dishes in the kitchen, records show.

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“Inside the house he tried to hit me. My daughter came in between to save me,” Farook’s mother said in court papers about one incident.

The legal separation of Farook’s parents was finalized by a Riverside County judge in 2008, and the couple’s divorce was finalized in February 2015, according to court records.

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