US police say Minneapolis church shooter ‘idolised’ mass murderers

Authorities accidental 23-year-old who attacked religion was ‘obsessed’ with sidesplitting children and ‘idolised’ US schoolhouse shooters.

A 23-year-old antheral who killed 2 young schoolhouse students and wounded much than a twelve aft opening occurrence connected youngsters sitting successful a Catholic religion successful the US metropolis of Minneapolis was “filled with hatred” and “obsessed” with sidesplitting children, authorities said.

Minneapolis constabulary main Brian O’Hara said connected Thursday that the fishy had fired 116 bullets done stained-glass windows portion the children celebrated Mass connected Wednesday during the archetypal week of classes astatine the Annunciation Catholic School.

“It is precise wide that this shooter had the volition to terrorise those guiltless children,” O’Hara said.

The constabulary main besides requested that the quality media halt reporting the shooter’s sanction due to the fact that the intent of this “heinous attack” was to summation “notoriety”. The assailant took their ain beingness successful a car parkland pursuing the shooting.

The victims of the attack were an eight-year-old lad and a girl, aged 10.

Acting US Attorney Joe Thompson said videos and writings the assailant near down “expressed hatred towards astir each radical imaginable”, including Mexicans, Christians and Jews.

But 1 radical the attacker did not hatred was “the astir notorious schoolhouse shooters and wide murderers successful our country’s history”, whom the fishy “idolised”, Thompson said.

In particular, “the shooter was obsessed with the thought of sidesplitting children”, helium said.

Flowers and a stuffed carnal beryllium extracurricular the Annunciation Church connected Thursday, which is simply a location to an simple schoolhouse and was the country of a shooting the time before, successful Minneapolis, Minnesota [Tim Evans/Reuters]

The latest wide shooting successful the US has erstwhile again renewed statement astir weapon information and restrictions successful the US.

Deadly weapon unit has grown much communal successful schools, churches and different settings erstwhile considered harmless successful the US, contempt efforts to beef up information and place imaginable perpetrators earlier they tin act.

The FBI has gathered grounds demonstrating the religion onslaught “was an enactment of home coercion motivated by a hate-filled ideology”, manager Kash Patel said connected X earlier connected Thursday.

Family members described eight-year-old Fletcher Merkel arsenic a lad who loved his family, fishing, cooking and immoderate athletics helium was allowed to play. The parents of the 2nd victim, 10-year-old Harper Moyski, said successful a connection that she was a agleam and joyful child.

The fig of children wounded successful the onslaught was raised to 15 connected Thursday aft 1 antecedently chartless unfortunate came forward, constabulary said. Three radical successful their 80s were besides injured.

One kid is successful captious condition, and an big is successful superior condition, authorities said.

Police said the shooter, who had nary transgression record, had precocious purchased each 3 guns legally and had changed their sanction successful 2020 and identified arsenic a transgender woman.

The shooter besides antecedently attended the Catholic schoolhouse linked to the church, and their parent had antecedently worked astatine the church.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies