1 week ago
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GRAZ, Austria -- The erstwhile pupil who killed 9 students and a teacher astatine a schoolhouse successful Austria and past took his ain beingness planned the attack successful detail, but helium appears to person changeable his victims astatine random and investigators inactive haven't been capable to ascertain his motive, officials said Thursday.
The 21-year-old had near the BORG Dreierschützengasse precocious schoolhouse successful Graz 3 years ago, breaking disconnected his studies aft attending for 3 years, constabulary said. They said they knew of nary idiosyncratic transportation betwixt the gunman and the students helium shot, but that 1 of the 2 teachers helium changeable had erstwhile taught him. They were inactive investigating whether that was a factor.
The onslaught prompted Austria to state 3 days of national mourning, and ample numbers of candles person been laid successful Graz's main quadrate and extracurricular the school.
The assailant, an Austrian who lived with his parent adjacent Graz and whom officials person declined to identify, utilized a Mercury double-barreled shotgun and a Glock 19 handgun successful the shooting. Michael Lohnegger, the caput of Styria province's transgression constabulary office, said that helium arrived astatine the schoolhouse Tuesday greeting with a backpack containing the weapons, and enactment connected instrumentality including shooting glasses and a headset successful a bath earlier starting a astir seven-minute shooting spree.
He opened occurrence indiscriminately connected the building's 3rd level earlier shooting unfastened the locked doorway of a fourth-floor schoolroom and again firing indiscriminately, Lohnegger told a quality conference. Lohnegger said that helium had capable ammunition to proceed shooting and it was unclear wherefore helium hadn't; the assailant past returned to the bath and changeable himself fatally successful the head.
A hunt of his location uncovered a farewell missive and video, which Lohnegger said added up to “an apology directed to his household for the transgression and a wide thank-you,” but offered nary “indication for a motive.”
They besides recovered a handwritten enactment that showed helium had planned the onslaught “down to the smallest detail" — mounting retired however helium would proceed, but giving nary day for the crime. It suggested that helium had lacked capable clip to physique a afloat functional tube bomb, and investigators recovered 1 that wouldn't person worked.
Lohnegger said a representation had emerged of “a precise introverted person” who mostly didn't instrumentality portion successful real-world activities, and that his large passionateness was taking portion successful online first-person shooter games.
“But adjacent here, determination is nary accusation from his idiosyncratic surroundings that helium ever expressed immoderate choler oregon resentment toward the school, students oregon teachers,” helium added. The antheral had nary erstwhile constabulary grounds and “there were decidedly nary peculiar problems with him astatine this school.”
The shooter was successful unspecified vocational grooming astatine the clip of the attack, investigators said.
He had bought the shotgun legally successful Graz successful aboriginal April, and the handgun from different store successful the metropolis successful precocious May. He had a licence to ain weapons that required a study from a intelligence expert, which seemingly was produced successful March.
Starting successful March, helium took portion successful shooting signifier 5 times astatine a shooting nine successful Graz, utilizing a hired firearm, Lohnegger said.
The slain students were six girls and 3 boys aged betwixt 14 and 17. Eleven radical were wounded successful the attack, and authorities said connected Wednesday that their lives weren't successful danger.
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Associated Press writer Geir Moulson successful Berlin contributed to this report.
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