A federal law enforcement official said Thursday that more than $13.6 million in phony sports merchandise has been confiscated over the past five months. The official expects to seize more in New Orleans this weekend. John Morton, immigration and customs enforcement director, said federal authorities have shut down more than 300 websites selling sports goods. Evidence has shown that the Mexican drug cartel has gotten involved in selling the counterfeit NFL merchandise, such as fake jerseys. (Read full story here.)

After a 24-hour manhunt, Phoenix, Ariz. police were notified about a body that officials have confirmed is the gunman from Wednesday’s office shooting. The incident resulted in the death of a call-center CEO and critically wounded a lawyer. Another woman was also shot, but her injuries are not life-threatening. The deceased gunman, Arthur Douglas Harmon, 70, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. (Read full story here.)

Syria threatened Thursday to retaliate after Israeli airstrike hit a Syrian military target Wednesday. The target was a convoy suspected of carrying anti-craft weapons heading to the Lebanese militant group, Hezbollah. Syria, backed by its ally Iran, said Israel will regret the attack. Syria sent a letter to the U.N. Secretary-General that stated the country’s “right to defend itself,” and holds Israel and its allies responsible.

Authorities said a shooting at an Atlanta, Ga., middle school resulted in one injury. Police said the shooting was not random and the injured boy is not in critical condition. Carlos Campos, Atlanta police spokesman, said police believe the gunman and the injured boy got into an altercation that later led to the shooting on Thursday. The suspect has been taken into custody.

Contact Maura Zurick at [email protected].