Student, 14, Arrested As Four Are Confirmed Dead In US School Shooting

The gunman who carried out a mass shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, on Wednesday morning, September 4, has been identified as a 14-year-old student.

The rampage resulted in the deaths of two students and two teachers. Nine other individuals, including a math teacher with a severely injured hip, were hospitalized with gunshot wounds. At least two of the victims were airlifted to a hospital for treatment.

One survivor recounted how the shooter demanded entry at a barricaded classroom door before moving on, while other students texted their parents in panic, expressing their love and fear.

The suspect, Colt Gray, a student at the school, surrendered to a school resource officer who confronted him shortly after the shooting began at around 10:20 a.m., according to Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey. Gray was unharmed and is set to be charged with murder as an adult.

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith expressed his sorrow for the victims and the community, emphasizing, “My heart hurts for these kids, my heart hurts for our community, but I want to make it very clear that hate will not prevail in this county. Love will prevail over what happened today.”

Authorities are currently questioning Gray and his family. The motive behind the attack is still unclear, as there appears to be no prior connection between Gray and the victims.

Gray had come to the FBI’s attention last year due to online threats related to school shootings. In May 2023, anonymous tips and threatening posts, including photos of guns, led the FBI to investigate him. The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, which identified Gray as a potential suspect, interviewed him and his father. Gray’s father reported that while there were hunting guns in the house, his son did not have unsupervised access to them. Gray denied making the threats, and there was insufficient cause for further action at that time. Local schools were advised to monitor Gray’s behavior.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is now examining any potential connections between the 2023 threats and the recent shooting at Apalachee High School.