Arcan Cetin, the alleged shooter at Cascade Mall in Washington, voted in the United States multiple times, despite not being a U.S. citizen, KING 5 reports.

State records show that Cetin, who emigrated to the U.S. from Turkey as a child and is accused of killing five people, registered to vote in 2014 and participated in three election cycles, which includes the presidential primary in May.

Cetin is a permanent resident or green card holder, but according to KING’s sources, he has not applied for U.S. citizenship. Voters in Washington State are not required to show proof of citizenship when registering to vote.

“We don’t have a provision in state law that allows us, either county elections officials or the secretary of state’s office to verify someone’s citizenship,” Secretary of State Kim Wyman told KING. “So, we’re in this place where we want to make sure we’re maintaining people’s confidence in the elections and the integrity of the process, but also that we’re giving this individual, like we would any voter, his due process. We’re moving forward, and that investigation is really coming out of the investigation from the shootings.”

Voting as a non-U.S. citizen carries a penalty of up to five years in prison or a $10,000 fine, according to the secretary of state’s office.

“The penalties are very serious. That’s why we want to make sure we’re very measured, and this is why we want to make sure we’re very calm and purposeful in how we move forward,” Wyman added. “The stakes are very high on both sides. You want to keep the confidence level high, but you also want to protect the voting rights of everyone.”

Although it’s impossible to determine how many non-citizens in Washington have registered to vote, Wyman does not believe this one instance is representative of a larger issue.

“Our hands are kind of tied, but make no mistake, we want to make sure that everybody has confidence that people casting ballots are eligible. This is certainly going to be a topic at next legislation.”

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/mall-shooter-voted-illegally/2016/09/29/id/750858/