PICTURED: Georgia school shooter Colt Gray as his ‘obsession’ with Parkland massacre is revealed
The Georgia high school shooter who killed four people and wounded nine others on Wednesday has been captured on camera for the first time.
The gunman, identified as 14-year-old Colt Gray, opened fire at Apalachee High School in Winder shortly after 10:20 a.m., killing two classmates and two teachers.
Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said Gray immediately surrendered when confronted by school resource officers at the scene. He has since been charged with four counts of murder and will be tried as an adult, the GBI confirmed.
Students Mason Schermerhorn, 14, and Christian Angulo, 14, and teachers Richard Aspenwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53, were named as the deceased.
When police searched the teen’s Georgia home after the massacre, they reportedly found evidence that the teen was “obsessed” with mass shootings, particularly the 2018 Parkland massacre that left 17 people dead.
Colt Gray (pictured) opened fire at Apalachee High School in Winder shortly after 10:20 a.m., killing two classmates and two teachers
Pictured: Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz in court. Investigators say they found evidence he was ‘obsessed’ with the 2018 massacre that left 17 people dead
Gray was known to the FBI after a flood of tips came in about him last year.
In May 2023, Jackson County deputies questioned both Gray and his father about a Discord channel believed to be linked to the then-13-year-old boy, in which threats were allegedly made about a school shooting.
According to agents, the Discord account had a username in Russian and the letters translated to the name Lanza, a reference to Adam Lanza, the perpetrator of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy.
Gray denied being the author of the threats and told police he had shut down his Discord after being hacked repeatedly. He expressed concern that someone would make such accusations about him.
Gray’s family remained tight-lipped when confronted by reporters.
Online, his aunt swore “full throttle blood” when she claimed he had been “abused” his entire life. Those comments were deleted last night after a flood of backlash.
Gray remains in juvenile detention in Georgia, pending his first court appearance, scheduled for Friday morning. He will be charged as an adult, sheriffs said.
A large police presence stormed Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia on Wednesday after officials said a student opened fire, wounding nine and killing four.
Mason Schermerhorn, 14, an autistic student at Apalachee High School, was the first victim to be identified. Christian Angulo, 14, also lost his life in the senseless shooting
Teacher Richard Aspinwall was named as one of the four victims of the shooting. Christina Irimie was also identified as a victim
It is unclear how the 14-year-old obtained the weapon used in the attack. Authorities have not yet disclosed what type of firearm was used.
Sheriff Smith revealed that Wednesday was Gray’s first “real day” at Apalachee High.
He said, “He was a brand new student at Barrow County Schools, he had enrolled about two weeks earlier. This was his second day at school. He had been there before, he left early, that day and this was his first real full day.”
According to police, Gray opened fire at about 10:23 a.m., killing at least 13 people. Panic ensued at the school.
Footage showed students streaming onto campus as terrified parents rushed to find their children. One mother described the scene outside the school as sheer “chaos.”
Lyela Sayerath, a third-grader, said she sat next to Colt Gray in math class minutes before he began the shooting.
She told CNN that Colt left the classroom at the start of class at 9:45 a.m., about 30 minutes before the active shooter alert sounded.
Gray hadn’t picked up a bathroom pass, she said, so she initially thought he’d simply skipped class. But then a loudspeaker went off, telling teachers to check their email.
Sayerath said Gray came back outside the classroom shortly afterward and a student stood up to open the door for him, but when he saw his gun, he jumped back.
“I think he saw that we weren’t going to let him in. And I think the classroom next to me, their door, was open, so I think he just started shooting into the classroom,” she said.
Sayerath said Gray fired several rounds “one after the other.” He added: “When we heard it, most of the people dropped to the ground and were crawling down, like piled on top of each other.”
Horrifying details have emerged from inside classrooms showing the chilling chaos students endured as gunfire rang out this morning
A mother described the scenes outside the high school as ‘chaos’
Sayerath said her boyfriend was in the classroom next door and saw someone get shot, which left him “shaken.” “He saw someone get shot. He had blood on him. He was limping a little bit. He looked shaken,” she added.
As more information emerges about the school shooting, officially the deadliest in Georgia history, students and parents are expressing their shock at the horrors that unfolded.
One mother, Erin Clark, shared the text messages she had with her son Ethan from the moment he learned there was an active shooter at his school.
He wrote: ‘School shooting rn (right now). I’m scared. I’m not joking.’
His mother responded immediately, assuring him she was leaving work. In a heartbreaking response, Ethan wrote, “I love you.”
“I love you too, baby. Where are you?” Clark said. Ethan told her he was in class and added, “Someone’s dead.”
Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said Gray immediately surrendered when confronted by police, and “gave up and got on the ground.”
On Thursday, distraught students flocked to the school grounds to express their condolences over the tragedy.
A makeshift memorial has been set up with a wreath and flowers. On Thursday, families and students gathered at the somber scene to pay their respects to the lives lost in the tragedy.
President Joe Biden issued a statement following the tragedy condemning gun violence.
He said: ‘What should have been a joyous start to the school year 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 being taught how to duck and take cover instead of how to read and write.
“We can no longer accept this as normal.”
Biden called on Congress to say “enough is enough” and pass new gun safety legislation, describing gun violence as an “epidemic.”
On Thursday, large numbers of sad students came to the school grounds to mourn the tragedy
On Thursday, families and students stood at the somber scene to pay their respects to the lives lost in the tragedy
A temporary memorial has been created using a wreath and flowers