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Fifteen-year-old Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow went to her school in Madison, Wisconsin, as usual Monday morning and waited three hours before pulling out a gun and opening fire on students and teachers.
She killed a teacher and a fellow student during the rampage and left six injured. Four were taken to hospital, two remained in critical condition.
Rupnow was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound after police arrived on the scene, and died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.
They arrived three minutes after a second-grader reported an active shooter at Abundant Life Christian School at 11 a.m. yesterday, as students braced themselves under their strict lockdown procedures.
The shooting prompted an outpouring of grief in the community and calls from President Biden to enact gun control legislation to prevent further massacres.
Similar calls have gone unheeded after almost every school shooting in recent history.
But as investigators try to figure out exactly what happened yesterday morning, there remain a number of unanswered questions for police to answer.
Police arrived at the school three minutes after receiving the report of an active shooter
The gunman, who went by the name Samantha, opened fire on a room full of students from several classes, according to Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes (students leave Monday)
Police on scene at Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow’s home in Madison, Wisconsin
What was Natalie Rupnow’s motive?
Investigators are still trying to determine Rupnow’s Monday morning attack at the Christian school in Madison.
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said Monday evening that a motive for the attack was not immediately known and it was not clear whether the victims were targeted.
Three people were killed in the attack, including the gunman. Six were injured. Two were left in critical condition, and three students and a teacher suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Two people were released from SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital Madison last night.
Barnes said police were talking to the shooter’s father and other family members, who were cooperative, and searching the shooter’s home.
“He lost someone, too,” Barnes said of the shooter’s father. “And so we’re not going to rush the information. We take our time and make sure we do our due diligence.”
Police raided the home of Rupnow’s family, eight miles from the school, on Monday evening, with SWAT teams planting stun grenades on the property.
Rupnow is said to have left behind a manifesto that is being widely shared online and which investigators are now sifting through but have yet to confirm its accuracy.
A law enforcement source told CNN that Rupnow had “addressed issues and expressed some of them in writings, which they are now reviewing.”
Did Natalie Rupnow want to die?
Police arrived on scene three minutes after receiving reports of an active shooter at the school and found Rupnow having suffered a gunshot wound to himself.
Police found a gun and Rupnow was pronounced dead in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.
Police are still working to verify a manifesto attributed to Rupnow.
Screenshots allegedly taken from Rupnow’s Spotify account and shared online included playlists titled ‘Suicidal’ and ‘Kill me wtf’.
Nora Gottsckalk, eight, was in the hallway of Abundant Life Christian School in Madison just before 11 a.m., getting ready for lunch, when police say Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow opened fire
Police lead students after the shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison on Monday
Law enforcement officers stand at the scene of Monday’s shooting that left three dead, including the shooter
How did Natalie Rupnow come into possession of the gun?
Rupnow waited three hours before pulling out a 9mm handgun and attacking her fellow students and teachers, an official told AP.
Police recovered the weapon after the attack, but are still investigating how they got their hands on it.
Police also confirmed that shooter Rupnow was not on their radar and had had no previous interaction with her before Monday, although they said an investigation would confirm that.
Barnes said the suspect’s home was searched Monday — and police are seeking additional search warrants.
It has not yet been confirmed whether Rupnow’s family were gun owners.
Did Natalie Rupnow have a boyfriend?
Police have not commented publicly on Rupnow’s relationships, other than to say the family is cooperating with their investigation.
But a social media user claimed to have spoken to Rupnow’s alleged friend, who allegedly shared a manifesto that police are now trying to verify.
‘We have not been able to verify that it is authentic. We are certainly aware that it was posted and that the person who posted it would have some connection to the victim,” Barnes said of the document.
The social media user said only that they had spoken to Rupnow’s “alleged boyfriend,” who said he knew her from Samantha, not Natalie.
The user quoted the “alleged boyfriend” to refute rumors that Rupnow was transgender, saying they pointed them to the alleged manifesto.
“Her boyfriend says the photo making the rounds is not how he remembers her and believes it has been slightly edited “to make her look worse,” they claimed.
Barnes said the suspect’s home was searched Monday — and police are seeking additional search warrants
People are seen at a reunification center after a shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison
Children prepare to board a bus to the reunification center to meet their parents after the December 16 shooting
Was Natalie Rupnow transgender?
Amid widespread speculation on social media about the shooter’s motive and identity, Chief Barnes firmly told a news conference that rumors were not helping the investigation.
‘I don’t know if Natalie was transgender or not. And honestly, I don’t think that’s important at all,” he said.
“I don’t think what happened today has anything to do with how she or he or they want to identify themselves.” He added that it didn’t matter much for now and that it “just didn’t help.”
“For what we’re doing right now, today, literally eight hours after a mass shooting at a school in Madison, it is of no importance at this point (what gender the shooter was),” he said.
He also claimed he had no knowledge of previous interactions with Rupnow: “I think if there had been, we would certainly have had some form of intervention, but I’m not aware of that.”