FBI agents have swooped on the home of Minneapolis shooter Robin Westman’s mother after it emerged she wasn’t cooperating with cops.
Cops are continuing their probe into Westman, 23, after he killed two children who were gathering to celebrate Mass.
FBI agents swooped on the home of Minneapolis shooter Robin Westman’s motherWink TV
Mary Westman worked at the school adjacent to the church where the shooting happenedFacebook
ReutersWestman penned a rambling essay to family and friends before the horror unfolded[/caption]
The horror at the Annunciation Catholic Church unfolded in the first week of school.
Westman was found with a gunshot wound in the head after killing the schoolchildren, who have since been identified as Fletcher Merkel and Harper Moyski.
Westman’s mother Mary worked at the adjacent school before her retirement in 2021.
Plain-clothed FBI agents were seen at a home in Naples, Florida, that belonged to her, as reported by Wink News.
They banged on the windows of the property, but their attempts to extract answers proved futile.
Agents then turned the backdoor, but didn’t have any success.
The development came after Brian O’Hara, the Minneapolis police chief, admitted they hadn’t been able to talk to Mary.
Department of Justice officials are still probing the shooting as a domestic terror attack and Catholic hate crime.
Westman posted a series of chilling videos before carrying out Wednesday’s shooting.
In the clips, Westman showed off guns and ammunition that had chilling messages on them.
Some were vile anti-Semitic slurs, while others featured the names of past shooters.
One name was Robert Bowers – the perpetrator behind the Tree of Life Synagogue massacre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Eleven people were killed inside the place of worship in 2018.
Another name that featured in the video was Breivik.
This appeared to be a reference to the mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik.
Annunciation Catholic School shooting timeline
TWO children have been killed and 17 injured after a lone gunman shrouded in a black outfit opened fire inside a Minnesota Catholic school.
Here is a timeline of how the fatal tragedy unfolded.
On Wednesday morning at 8:15 am CT, students at the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis gathered for their scheduled all-school mass
Just before 8:30, Minneapolis police responded to a call that there was a shooting
Cops say that a lone gunman in his early 20s fired a rifle, shotgun, and pistol through the windows as children aged pre-K through eighth grade prayed inside
Two children aged eight and 10 were killed, and 17 others, including 14 children, were injured by the gunfire
The shooter later died after appearing to take his own life at the back of the church
At 9:32 am, the Minneapolis Police Department confirmed that the shooter had been “contained.”
ReutersWestman sketched a layout of the church in his journal[/caption]
Family HandoutFletcher Merkel and Harper Moyski were killed in the horror[/caption]
Westman appeared to have a dark obsession with shootings and had a warped thought of wanting to make children suffer.
The final line of a note to his family and friends featured a line that told them to pray for the victims.
Westman also showed off his warped plans to carry out the shooting.
One page of his journal featured a page showing the layout of the church.
Westman used three guns to fire through the windows as part of his rampage.
Around 120 shell casings were found at the church, according to O’Hara.
Cops then revealed 116 rifle rounds and three shotgun rounds were found.
A live bullet got jammed in a handgun.
Seventeen others were injured, including three people in their 80s.
All those who were wounded are expected to survive.
Cops have conducted searches at properties linked to Westman.
They also seized electronic devices as part of their investigation.
‘COWARDLY’ SHOOTER
Police said officers discovered a smoke bomb at the scene of the shooting.
Westman was branded a “coward” by O’Hara and Jesse Merkel, Fletcher’s father.
“Because of their actions, we will never be allowed to hold him, talk to him, play with him, and watch him grow into the wonderful young man he was on the path to becoming,” he said.
Jesse didn’t refer to Westman by name as he launched the blistering tirade.
He told parents to give their children an “extra hug and kiss.”
Cops still don’t know why Westman targeted the church despite his chilling YouTube videos.
But, O’Hara described Westman as someone who was “deranged.”
The US has seen 285 mass shootings this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive.
The organization describes a mass shooting as an incident where there are at least four victims – either killed or injured.
GettyMourners attend vigils in Minneapolis following the shootings[/caption]
APPeople seen holding stuffed toys and candles as they gather in parks to remember the victims[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
