Colt Gray: What we know about the 14-year-old school shooting suspect

Published

8 months ago

September 5, 2024

admin

A 14-year-old boy has been arrested after allegedly shooting dead two students and two teachers at a high school in the US.

A gunman opened fire at Apalachee High School in Georgia on Wednesday morning, leading dozens of police officers to swarm the campus as students and teachers rushed to an American football field for shelter.

Police have named the suspect, despite him being a minor, as Colt Gray.

Here’s what we know about the boy so far.

Gray is a student at Apalachee High School and was arrested at the scene of the shooting, according to Georgia Bureau of Investigation director Chris Hosey.

He said law enforcement officers and two school resource officers responded to reports of an active shooter within minutes.

One of the school officers confronted Gray and he surrendered immediately, Barrow County sheriff Jud Smith said, adding: “The shooter quickly realised that if he did not give up, it would end with an OIS [officer-involved shooting].”

The teen, who is currently in police custody, will be charged with murder and tried as an adult, the authorities said.

Sheriff Smith said a motive was unclear and that he did not know whether the victims were targeted or whether there was a connection between the gunman and the victims.

“I don’t know why it happened and we may never know,” he said.

The attack was carried out using an AR-style weapon – a lightweight semi-automatic rifle often associated with school shootings.

Gray had been investigated before

Gray was investigated by police over threats to carry out a similar attack last year, the FBI said in a statement on Wednesday.

They said they received several anonymous tips about someone using photos of guns online to make threats about committing a school shooting.

The FBI interviewed Gray, then 13, and his father, who stated he had hunting guns but that his son did not have unsupervised access to them.

Gray himself denied making the threats online and at the time there was no probable cause for arrest and no further action was taken, the statement said, adding that local schools were alerted “for continued monitoring of the subject”.

Authorities are now re-investigating the incident and any possible connection it may have to the most recent shooting.

After speaking about the FBI statement, Mr Hosey said: “We are also aware of some previous contacts that the Department of Family and Children Services had had with the suspect and his family, and we are pursuing that avenue as well.”

What we know about the victims

The four victims who died have been named as students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14, and teachers Richard Aspenwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53.

Christian was described as “a very good kid and very sweet and so caring” by his older sister, Lisette Angulo.

“He was so loved by many. His loss was so sudden and unexpected. We are truly heartbroken. He really didn’t deserve this,” she added.

Mr Aspenwall and Ms Irimie both taught maths, according to the school’s website, with the former also listed as a defensive coordinator for the football team.

Nine other people, eight students and one teacher, were injured in the attack. Authorities said they were all expected to make a recovery.

‘I didn’t want to die that way’

Witnesses have been talking about the traumatic incident while the investigation continues.

Student Camille Nelms said she was shedding tears when a gunman opened fire on her classroom.

As bullets came flying into her classroom, the teacher and students tried to take shelter in the corner.

“I was crying, I didn’t want to die that way,” Nelms told NBC affiliate WXIA of Atlanta. “I don’t want to meet the Lord that way.”

Student Jacob King said he had dozed off in his world history class after morning football practice when he heard around 10 gunshots.

He said he did not believe the shooting was real until he heard an officer yelling at someone to put down their gun. He said that when his class was led out, he saw officers shielding what appeared to be an injured student.

Ashley Enoh said she was at home on Wednesday morning when she got a text from her brother, who is a senior at the school.

The message said: “Just so you know, I love you.”

When she asked in the family group chat what was going on, he said there was a gunman at the school.

Shirley Power spoke to Sky News’ US partner NBC News about learning of the shooting at her grandchild’s school from her daughter.

“My daughter called me at work screaming that there was a shooter at Apalachee and begged me to get there as quick as possible,” Ms Powers said.

She said the principal instructed her grandson to run to the band room.

“Start praying, for all the kids, not just my grandson,” she added.

Authorities were alerted to the attack due to a new alarm system that had only been implemented a week earlier.

Sheriff Jud Smith said: “All of our teachers are armed with a form of ID, this alarms us and alerts law enforcement officers after buttons are pressed on the ID.

“It alerts us there is an active situation at the school. We’ve had that about a week now.”

Police said that the actions of teachers saved a number of lives.

On Wednesday night, local council member Power Evans spoke to hundreds of community members at a vigil in a local park.

“Whether you have a student, whether you’re the mother or father of a student, brother or sister, whether you’re a teacher, an Apalachee teacher, this all affects us,” he said.

“We may be a county of 90,000 people, but we’re still a small community, and when one of us hurts, we all hurt.”

Apalachee High School, which had almost 1,900 students last year, began term on 1 August.

Authorities said they were still chasing down a number of leads and carrying out investigations.

World

Pakistan launches ‘military operation’ against India

Published

4 hours ago

May 10, 2025

admin

Pakistan launches 'military operation' against India

Pakistan has launched attacks on “multiple targets” across India, according to the media wing of Pakistan’s military.

Pakistan said in a statement that retaliatory attacks are underway in response to what it called “continuous provocation” by India, which fired missiles at three air bases inside Pakistan.

“Multiple targets in this operation are being engaged all across India,” the statement from Pakistan Armed Forces (PAF) said.

Pakistan’s military said it used medium-range Fateh missiles to strike more than 25 military sites, including airbases and weapons depots in the Indian states of Gujarat, Punjab and Rajasthan, as well as locations in India-administered Kashmir.

Pakistan’s military posted footage on X showing missiles being fired from what appeared to be a mobile launcher.

The AP news agency also said loud explosions have been heard in India-administered Kashmir, in the disputed region’s two big cities of Srinagar and Jammu, and the garrison town of Udhampur.

Meanwhile, an Indian military source told Reuters that India has launched air operations in Pakistan, although no further details were given.

The operations mark the latest escalation in a conflict between the two nuclear-armed rivals, triggered by a deadly attack last month in India-administered Kashmir.

Most of the 26 civilians killed were Hindu Indian tourists. India blames Pakistan for backing the assault, an accusation Islamabad rejects.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called a meeting of the National Command Authority, the body which takes security decisions, including those related to the country’s nuclear arsenal.

State-run Pakistan television said three air bases were struck by India on Friday, although Pakistan insisted most of the missiles had been intercepted.

Despite the military offensive, PAF also posted a message on X in what appeared to represent an opportunity to de-escalate the situation.

“Now that a response has been given we hope the neighbour [India] will move to dialogue and diplomacy like Civilized Nations,” it said.

In recent days, both countries have launched a series of missile and drone strikes, although the scale and impact have been consistently questioned by each other.

On Wednesday, India conducted airstrikes on several sites in Pakistani territory. Pakistan said it shot down five Indian fighter jets.

On Thursday, India claimed to have repelled drone and missile attacks at military targets in more than a dozen cities and towns, including Jammu in India-administered Kashmir. Meanwhile, India claimed it struck Pakistan’s air defence systems and radars close to the city of Lahore.

The Indian army said on Friday that Pakistan fired about 300 to 400 drones, targeting military installations along the western borders – a claim strongly denied by Pakistan.

The G7 group of advanced economies, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the US and Britain, urged maximum restraint from both India and Pakistan.

“We call for immediate de-escalation and encourage both countries to engage in direct dialogue towards a peaceful outcome,” a statement issued on Friday said.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.

World

European leaders to meet in Ukraine for ‘coalition of the willing’ talks – and issue call to Russia

Published

4 hours ago

May 10, 2025

admin

European leaders to meet in Ukraine for 'coalition of the willing' talks - and issue call to Russia

Sir Keir Starmer will join other European leaders in Kyiv on Saturday for talks on the “coalition of the willing”.

The prime minister is attending the event alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, recently-elected German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

It will be the first time the leaders of the four countries will travel to Ukraine at the same time – on board a train to Kyiv – with their meeting hosted by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Follow latest updates on the Ukraine war

Military officers from around 30 countries have been involved in drawing up plans for the coalition, which would provide a peacekeeping force in the event of a ceasefire being agreed between Russia and Ukraine.

Ahead of the meeting on Saturday, Sir Keir, Mr Macron, Mr Tusk and Mr Merz released a joint statement voicing support for Ukraine and calling on Russia to agree to a 30-day ceasefire.

“We reiterate our backing for President Trump’s calls for a peace deal and call on Russia to stop obstructing efforts to secure an enduring peace,” they said.

“Alongside the US, we call on Russia to agree a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to create the space for talks on a just and lasting peace.”

The leaders said they were “ready to support peace talks as soon as possible”.

But they warned that they would continue to “ratchet up pressure on Russia’s war machine” until Moscow agrees to a lasting ceasefire.

“We are clear the bloodshed must end, Russia must stop its illegal invasion, and Ukraine must be able to prosper as a safe, secure and sovereign nation within its internationally recognised borders for generations to come,” their statement added.

“We will continue to increase our support for Ukraine.”

The European leaders are set to visit the Maidan, a central square in Ukraine’s capital where flags represent those who died in the war.

They are also expected to host a virtual meeting for other leaders in the “coalition of the willing” to update them on progress towards a peacekeeping force.

This force “would help regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces after any peace deal and strengthen confidence in any future peace”, according to Number 10.

World

Ten explosions near international airport in India-administered part of Kashmir, officials say

Published

10 hours ago

May 9, 2025

admin

Ten explosions have been heard near Srinagar International Airport in India-administered parts of Kashmir, officials have told Reuters news agency.

The blasts followed blackouts caused by multiple projectiles, which were seen in the sky above the city of Jammu earlier on Friday.

Explosions were also heard in the Sikh holy city of Amritsar, in the neighbouring Punjab state, according to Reuters.

An Indian military official told the agency that “drones have been sighted” and “they are being engaged”.

It comes as tensions between India and Pakistan across the line of control around the region of Kashmir have boiled over this week, leading to fears of a wider conflict.

On Wednesday morning, India carried out missile strikes in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered parts of the disputed region.

The retaliation came weeks after 26 people, mainly Indian tourists, were shot dead by gunmen in an India-administered part of Kashmir last month.

The government in India said it hit nine “terrorist infrastructure” sites, while Pakistan said it was not involved in the April attack and the sites were not militant bases.

Around 48 people have been killed since Wednesday, according to casualty estimates on both sides – which have not been independently verified.

India also suspended its top cricket tournament, the Indian Premier League, as a result of rising tensions, while the Pakistan Super League moved the remainder of its season to the United Arab Emirates.

Meanwhile, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a conference on Friday that the US is in constant contact with both India and Pakistan.