Hasan Was Worried About Results of Recent HIV Test
Investigators Also Find Accused Fort Hood Shooter Sent $30,000 a Year Overseas to Islamic "Charities"
By JOSEPH RHEE, ANNA SCHECTER and BRIAN ROSS
Nov. 19, 2009 —
Major Nidal Hasan seemed worried about the results of an HIV blood test taken a week before the Fort Hood shooting rampage, according to federal investigators piecing together background details on Hasan's life.
The information came from a member of the Fort Hood medical staff who was in the building where Hasan is accused of opening fire on November 5 and killing 13 people.
The investigators said there was no indication that Hasan was HIV positive, although a bottle of medicine used to treat HIV-positive individuals, Combivir, was seen in Hasan's apartment by ABC News last week. Medical experts say many doctors also have Combivir on hand in case of an accidental needle stick. A second drug seen in the apartment, clarithromycin, is an antibiotic designed to treat respiratory infections. However, it can also be used to treat specific opportunistic infections in patients with HIV.
Hasan, who is not married, was a regular at a Killeen, Texas strip club which features nude dancers, according to employees there.
Investigators also found that Hasan donated $20,000 to $30,000 a year to overseas Islamic "charities." As an Army major, his yearly salary, including housing and food allowances, was approximately $92,000. A number of Islamic charities have been identified by U.S. authorities as conduits to terror groups.
Investigators said Hasan followed his own strict interpretation of how a Muslim should live -- including driving without auto insurance or signing up for life insurance provided through the military.
His academic record is replete with serious concerns about his religious statements and his academic abilities, the investigators found.
One of Hasan's commanding officers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Lieutenant Colonel Melanie Guerrero, told investigators she had considered failing him as an intern but "decided to allow him to pass since he was going into psychiatry and would not be doing any real patient care."
Guerrero told ABC News his performance problems stemmed from his lack of competence in the intensive care unit, including problems with recommending the proper medications or coming up with the right kind of patient treatment plan.
The Investigation Continues
FBI agents returned yesterday to Hasan's Killeen apartment complex as they continue to unearth details of his personal life.
CLICK HERE TO SEE INSIDE THE HOME OF NIDAL HASAN
On the day of the shooting, military authorities thought Hasan was on leave in the Washington, D.C. area, according to the investigators. He had gone on leave on Nov. 2 and was not scheduled to return until after Thanksgiving, shortly before his scheduled Nov. 28 deployment to Afghanistan.