Mason Schermerhorn, 14, was the first identified victim of the Apalachee school shooting Facebook/QuinTrilla Johnson Christian Angulo, 14, was killed in the shooting on Wednesday when suspect Colt Gray allegedly opened fire after leaving his algebra class GoFundMe Teacher Christina Irimie was confirmed dead in the aftermath of the shooting Christina Irimie Teacher and coach Richard Aspinwall was gunned down in the doorway of his classroom after trying to save the lives of his students Apalachee High School Footage from the scene shows what is believed to be the AR-15-style gun used for the horrific attack Storyful
Two teachers and two students died in the shooting and nine others were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Now, Gray’s classmate who was sitting next to him moments before the rampage began has spoken out about the morning of the shooting.
Lyela Sayarath told CNN that Gray fled their algebra class to allegedly carry out the attack – and she said he tried to target her class before turning on others.
The student said Gray left the classroom around 9:45 am.
About 30 minutes later, he tried getting back in, but the door had automatically locked behind him.
Sayarath said that a classmate went to let him in before suddenly stopping after noticing he had a gun.
What we know so far…
Four people are dead , and nine others were injured, the Georgia Bureau of Investigations confirmed.
She “saw that he had a gun, so she backed away,” Sayarath said.
“I guess he saw we weren’t going to let him in.”
The teenager said Gray then entered the next-door classroom and unleashed a barrage of rounds as Sayareth and her classmates barricaded themselves in and hid behind desks.
“He turned to the classroom that would have been to my right, and he just starts to shoot, and you hear about 10 to 15 rounds back-to-back,” she said.
A friend in the classroom being targeted by the gunman was “pretty shaken up” and “looked horrified” after getting blood on him and seeing someone get shot, she added.
Fellow student Janice Martinez told CNN that she initially thought her classmates were joking when she heard screaming from another room.
“It was like during the middle of [class], and I heard screaming and everything,” she said, and thought people were “playing around in the hallways or something.”
“I thought it was like someone just yelling or something. So I didn’t think much of it,” she explained.
“[Then] the noise kept getting louder and louder, and I was like, ‘No, no, guys.’ Like, I told everybody to get down. Get down, because, like, you don’t joke around with that.”
Student Lyela Sayarath speaks to CNN about the moment her classmate blocked Gray from entering before he turned on students next door CNN Students gathered at the school to mourn those who died in the shooting Reuters As well as the four victims of the shooting, nine others were hospitalized with injuries but are expected to recover Getty
As it emerged that he had been known to the FBI for a year before the shooting, Sayarath said she “wasn’t surprised” that Gray who was quiet and shy was identified as the suspect in the shooting.
“When you think of shooters and the way they act, it’s usually the quiet kid and he was the one that fit that description,” she said.
She added that Gray rarely spoke and often skipped class.
“He never really talked,” Sayarath said.
“He wasn’t there most times. Either he didn’t just come to school or he would just skip class.
“Even when he would’ve talked it was just one-word answers or short statements.”
ON FBI RADAR
On Wednesday the FBI detailed how it had held interviews with Gray and his father in May last year after receiving “several anonymous tips about online threats to commit a school shooting at an unidentified location and time.”
“The online threats contained photographs of guns,” a joint statement from the FBI Atlanta and Jackson County Sheriff’s Office read.
The FBI found that the post came from Georgia and an interview with Gray’s father revealed that hunting guns are kept in the home but that his son “did not have unsupervised access to them.”
While Gray, who was then 13, denied making the online threats, he was identified as a suspect and the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office continually monitored the teen.
Officials from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation named Gray as the suspect in the school shooting on Wednesday and confirmed the identities of his four victims.
It was like during the middle of [class], and I heard screaming and everything.
Janice Martinez Apalachee High School student
Students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angelo , both 14, and teachers Richard Aspinwall and Christina Irimie, were named in a press conference as those who died in the shooting.
Schermerhorn’s family had taken to social media in the immediate aftermath of the shooting to get help finding the teenager who had autism and had only just joined the school.
“If he is escalated, PLEASE use a calm voice with him,” family members wrote in a desperate plea on social media .
“Let him know his mom is looking for him for reassurance.”
After learning of his death the family confirmed the news and criticized gun violence saying it’s “sad we can’t even send our babies to school and them be safe.”
Another family member apologized to the teen saying “America failed you,” as they urged other parents “hug your children.”
Aspinwall was a math teacher at the school as well as a defensive coordinator after being hired last year.
The track and field coach had desperately tried to shield his students and get them to safety when he was gunned down in the doorway of the classroom.
“It’s no shock he died protecting the students at Apalachee. Praying so hard for his family and everyone who knew him,” an ex-student of Aspinwall’s wrote on Facebook .
Gray reportedly surrendered to authorities quickly when they arrived at the school 10 minutes after the first shots were fired AP Sheriff Jud Smith called the shooting ‘an evil thing’ as authorities confirmed that they are still investigating a possible motive and Gray is cooperating with them AFP Students were evacuated after Apalachee High School was put on lockdown during the shooting AP Students waited to be picked up by their families after the horrifying tragedy Getty
‘EVIL’
The Georgia Bureau of Investigations revealed that Gray has been charged with murder and will be tried as an adult.
He had surrendered quickly to cops after authorities arrived on the scene about 10 minutes after the shooting started.
Barrow County Sheriff Judd Smith confirmed in a press conference that no motive for the shooting has yet been identified but that Gray was cooperating with officials.
“What you see behind us is an evil thing,” he said before confirming that the nine other victims of the attack are expected to recover.
One of those injured, special education teacher David Phenix was shot in the hip and in the foot and required surgery and is in a stable condition.
Meanwhile, a heartbreaking text message has been revealed from a student to his mom after being caught up in the shooting.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have spoken out about the shooting calling for an end to the “gun violence epidemic.”
Biden's statement on the shooting
President Joe Biden has released a statement about the shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia on Wednesday morning.
“Jill and I are mourning the deaths of those whose lives were cut short due to more senseless gun violence and thinking of all of the survivors whose lives are forever changed,” Biden said.
“What should have been a joyous back-to-school season in Winder, Georgia, has now turned into another horrific reminder of how gun violence continues to tear our communities apart.
“Students across the country are learning how to duck and cover instead of how to read and write. We cannot continue to accept this as normal.
“We are closely coordinating with officials at the federal, state and local level, and are grateful for the first responders who brought the suspect into custody and prevented further loss of life,” he continued.
“Ending this gun violence epidemic is personal to me. It’s why I signed into law the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act – the most meaningful gun safety bill in decades – and have announced dozens of gun safety executive actions.
“I also established the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, overseen by Vice President Harris. We’ve made significant progress, but this crisis requires even more.
“After decades of inaction, Republicans in Congress must finally say ‘enough is enough’ and work with Democrats to pass common-sense gun safety legislation.
“We must ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines once again, require safe storage of firearms, enact universal background checks, and end immunity for gun manufacturers.
“These measures will not bring those who were tragically killed today back, but it will help prevent more tragic gun violence from ripping more families apart.”
Police tape was put up around AHS as cops said it was still an active crime scene Getty Cars parked near the perimeter of the high school as law enforcement officials flooded the scene Reuters An ambulance raced to the scene at AHS, where four people were killed and nine more injured Reuters
How did no one see him. Bring that gun into the school.?
Appatight
28d ago
I’ve seen 4 articles total about the shooting showing the victim photo like he was the shooter. The only black victim and they are using his photo. This probably wasn’t a mistake.
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