SICK footage has surfaced of shooter Robin Westman giggling hours before killing two children at a Minneapolis school on Wednesday.
Westman uploaded a video showing off multiple weapons, bullets, and disturbing writings before shooting through stained glass windows at the Catholic school during Mass before dying by suicide.
Two students, aged 8 and 10, were killed in the shooting at Annunciation Church in southern Minneapolis, which started during the worship service at around 8:30 am, police said.
Officials said 14 other kids were hurt in the attack, while three people in their 80s were also injured.
Children rushed out of the building in their school uniforms before being reunited with their families in heartbreaking scenes.
The shooting is now being investigated as an act of domestic terrorism and a hate crime targeting Catholics, FBI Director Kash Patel said.
Police identified the shooter as 23-year-old Robin Westman, who was found dead by a self-inflicted gunshot wound in the parking lot behind the church.
Court records show that Westman’s mom, Mary Grace, applied to change her child’s name in 2019 from Robert Paul Westman to Robin M. Westman, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune.
The name change was approved in 2020.
- Two children, ages 8 and 10, were killed while praying in pews
- 17 others were injured, including 14 children, and a local hospital is currently treating nine pediatric patients
- The suspect has been identified as Robin Westman, 23, whose mother worked at the school until 2021, who died at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot
- The shooter’s neighbors broke their silence on the tragedy
- Westman uploaded a sick video manically laughing minutes before the shooting showing off disturbing messages written across multiple guns, including a rifle, a shotgun, and a pistol with several magazines
- Sobbing children were evacuated from the church to reunite with their worried parents, with one boy overheard telling his dad, “I don’t feel safe”
- Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said he was briefed and is “praying for our kids and teachers”
- President Donald Trump has been briefed on the situation and ordered flags at half-staff to mourn the victims
Westman was connected to the Annunciation Church through Mary Grace, who retired from working there in 2021.
The shooter, who was armed with a rifle, pistol, and handgun, fired shots into the auditorium and reportedly tried to block the doors with a two-by-four, according to police.
All of the guns were purchased legally, authorities said.
Now, investigators are looking into a sick 11-minute video uploaded to YouTube in the hours before the murders, as it appears to be Westman’s manifesto.
HORRIFYING VIDEO
The video was scheduled ahead of time to upload at the time of the shooting, police said at a press briefing on Wednesday.
Westman could be heard maniacally giggling while muttering all alone and showing off writings addressed to loved ones, as well as guns with disturbing messages on them.
One of the guns had “Rupnow” written on it, which is likely a reference to Nashville school shooter Natalie Rupnow, who killed two and hurt six at her Christian school last December.
Other guns had the names of other mass killers, including Unabomber Ted Kaczynski and Pittsburgh synagogue shooter Robert Bowers, who murdered 11 in a place of worship in 2018.
The word Waco was on one of the rifles, referencing the 1993 standoff between extremist David Koresh, his followers, and the FBI that left 76 dead.
Westman wrote “kill Donald Trump” on one gun, “kiss me” on another, and displayed multiple antisemitic phrases on the weapons.
The video also showed the two-by-four plank of wood with the words “no escape!” written on it.
The killer also shared hopes for YouTuber and Texas congressional candidate Brandon Herrera to be president and bragged about meeting him at an event last year.
Herrera is a Second Amendment activist who has been criticized for inflammatory and antisemitic rhetoric.
The candidate’s campaign told The U.S. Sun, “I’m horrified by this clearly hate motivated attack on innocent children and disgusted that my name came out of this demon’s mouth.”
Westman’s handwritten letters to his friends and families included a chilling message telling readers to “pray for the victims and their families.”
“I love you all. I will remember you,” Westman wrote.
The writings reference suicide, “extremely violent thoughts and ideas,” and a sketch of a church’s layout, according to NBC News.
It’s unclear if the church depicted is Annunciation Church.
At the end of the video, Westman said, “This will just look like another video on the day that catches you all up.”
Police haven’t publicly identified a motive for the shooting.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said Westman, who was dressed in all black, was targeting students in a “deliberate act of violence.”
The Minnesota Police Department didn’t immediately return The U.S. Sun’s request for comment.
“Children are dead,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said at a press briefing on Wednesday.
Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/15060475/minneapolis-mass-shooting-robin-westman-annunciation-church/
