The father of Georgia shooting suspect Colt Gray allegedly informed investigators that he purchased the firearm used in the high school massacre as a Christmas present for his son .
Colin Gray, 54, is now facing a slew of charges including four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children.
14-year-old Gray has been charged as an adult with murder following the shootings at Apalachee High School outside Atlanta on Wednesday , which resulted in the tragic loss of two students and two teachers and left nine others injured.
The teenager is accused of using a semiautomatic assault-style rifle in the attack, with his father claiming he bought the AR-15-style rifle as a holiday present for his son.
A source told CNN that the AR-15-style rifle was purchased at a local gun store as a Christmas present by Colin Gray.
According to the timeline given to authorities by the teen's father, the gun was bought months after the family had been contacted by authorities regarding threats made to the school.
The AR-15 rifle is the country's most popular rifle and has been used in several mass shootings, but enthusiasts argue the gun has been 'wrongly demonized', reports NBC.
The latest sheriff's report, accessed on Thursday, reveals Colt Gray had denied making threats about executing a school shooting when questioned last year following a concerning social media post.
Nonetheless, discrepancies in evidence regarding the source of the post meant that law enforcement couldn't detain anyone based on the findings in the document.
The same report discloses that on May 21, 2023, Investigator Daniel Miller held discussions with both the young person and his father. It was established then that the lad did have access to firearms at home.
In the transcript of their conversation, Gray's father is quoted as saying, "I mean they aren't loaded, but they are down," while sharing an image from his phone showing a hunting trip he had recently been on with his son. He proudly shared the picture displaying his boy's blood-stained face from harvesting his first deer, labeling it "the greatest day ever."
In a turn of tragic events, however, the situation has since intensified. Now 14-year-old Gray finds himself charged as an adult with murder after the dreadful events at Apalachee High School in close proximity to Atlanta.
Arrest warrants lay the blame on Gray for utilizing a semi-automatic assault-type firearm in the attack that resulted in the demise of two pupils and two teachers, along with injuries to another nine people.
In a heartbreaking interview with Jackson County investigators last year, Colin Gray disclosed his son's struggles following his parents' separation and bullying experiences at school. The teenager was acquainted with guns through hunting excursions and target shooting with his dad.
He had once taken a photo with deer blood smeared on his face to mark his first hunt.
During the talk, Colin Gray emphasized: "He knows the seriousness of weapons and what they can do, and how to use them and not use them," as reported in transcripts from the sheriff's office.
This exchange occurred as sheriffs probed a frightening alert from the FBI about then-13-year-old Gray who "had possibly threatened to shoot up a middle school tomorrow."
The sheriff's office incident report details the threat made on Discord, a popular chat platform among gamers. Gray was held at a regional youth correctional facility on Thursday, with his initial hearing scheduled for Friday morning.
Confronted by two school officers, he surrendered and was arrested. Now charged as an adult with murder, he faces allegations over the tragic loss of students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14, and educators Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53, according to Chris Hosey, Director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
In addition to these fatalities, at least nine other individuals - eight students and one teacher from the school in Winder - were injured and transported to hospitals. All are expected to survive, according to Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith.
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