‘Nuke India’, ‘Kill Trump’ on weapons: Who was Robin Westman, the suspect in Minneapolis school shooting?

Two hundred and eighty-six shootings. That’s the number of shootings the United States has seen until August this year, the most recent being on Wednesday (August 26) when a shooter opened fire school children attending a church service in Minneapolis, killing two pupils and wounding 17 people.

The suspect in the shooting, identified as 23-year-old Robin Westman, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after firing a rifle through the side windows of the Annunciation Catholic School’s church, aiming at children who were attending a worship service during their first week of school.

Following the incident, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has deemed it as an “act of domestic terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics.”

Here’s what we know about the shooting and the shooter so far.

What happened in Minneapolis?

Authorities rushed to Annunciation Catholic School, located in south Minneapolis, after witnesses reported hearing semi-automatic gunfire at the pre-kindergarten through eighth-grade school. The incident occurred as students of the school were attending Mass, marking their first week back at school.

According to police chief Brian O’Hara, the gunman, who was armed with a rifle, shotgun, and pistol, sprayed bullets through the windows. He added that a wooden plank had been used to barricade some side doors. Authorities also found a smoke bomb but no explosives at the scene.

“Two young children, ages eight and 10, were killed where they sat in the pews,” O’Hara said, adding that another 14 children and three elderly parishioners were injured by gunfire.

Following the attack, the suspect killed themself in the parking lot.

Describing the scenes that unfolded during the shooting, one 10-year-old said that he survived all thanks to his friend. “I just ran under the pew, and then I covered my head,” he was quoted as telling CBS. “My friend Victor saved me though, because he laid on top of me, but he got hit.”

Bill Bienemann, a witness to the shooting, told Sky News it went on “for several minutes — a long time for live gunfire”. “I know what gunfire sounds like, and I was shocked,” he added. “I said there’s no way that could be gunfire, there was so much of it.”

Who was Robin Westman, the Minneapolis shooter?

As per authorities and FBI chief Kash Patel, the Minneapolis shooting was carried out by 23-year-old Robin Westman, “a male born as Robert Westman.” Westman, now 23, legally changed name in 2020 and identified as female.

Westman is believed to have acted alone in the attack and had lawfully purchased the rifle, pistol, and shotgun used. The suspect also had no criminal history, added authorities.

It has been revealed that Westman grew up in Richfield and the shooter’s mother was an employee at Annunciation School. Westman’s father owns a home less than a mile from the school and church, according to the Star-Tribune. The home was blocked off by police in the hours after the shooting.

While Westman’s motive for the shooting hasn’t been determined yet, authorities have found a manifesto published on YouTube, which provides an insight into Westman’s thinking. It has now been pulled down. However, it has some disturbing writings.

Some of the videos posted on YouTube showed Westman’s collection of firearms, ammunition and handwritten journals. The writings in the notebooks and on the firearms, which are written in a blend of Cyrillic alphabet, English and other languages, express a series of grievances, anger and ideations of harm to self and to others.

Westman also wrote about the violence and obsession with mass shootings, particularly those who attacked schools. The suspect also discussed suicide, depression, racism, and the particulars of carrying out a mass shooting.

In one video, Westman flips through a notebook containing pages upon pages of handwritten notes. In that video, Westman can be heard saying: “I love my family” and “I can’t deal with this anymore.”

The last page shown in the video reads: “The end. I’m so sorry.” It’s signed “Robin” with a heart drawn next to it.

In another entry, Westman writes, according to the New York Post, “If I carry out a racially motivated attack, it would be most likely against filthy Zionist jews,” before calling Jewish people “entitled” and “penny-sniffing” before adding “Free Palestine!”

“I hate fascism,” read yet another page, following it up shortly after with “I also love when kids get shot, I love to see kids get torn apart.”

In the manifesto, Westman also expresses admiration for Adam Lanza, the Sandy Hook school shooter.

Another video posted online also shows gun magazines scrawled with “for the children” and “kill Donald Trump.” There’s also the mention of “Breivik,” on the magazines, seemingly referencing Anders Behring Breivik, the neo-Nazi who killed 77 people in Norway in 2011.

“Nuke India”, “Israel must fall” and “Mashallah” were also written on one of the weapons.

The weapons also display the name of Robert Bowers, who was convicted of killing 11 people at a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018.

Besides this, Westman’s notebook also included a diagram of the inside of a church that seems to match the layout of Annunciation Church. The person recording showed themselves stabbing a knife into the drawing while saying, “ha, nice.”

What do officials say about the Minneapolis shooting?

The Minneapolis shooting has drawn condemnation and expressions of grief from many including President Donald Trump, who directed that US flags at the White House be lowered to half-staff.

Moreover, Pope Leo XIV said he was “profoundly saddened” by the tragedy.

Condemning the shooting, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called Westman a “deranged monster”. “This level of violence is unthinkable. Our deepest prayers are with the children, parents, families, educators, and Christians everywhere. We mourn with them, we pray for healing, and we will never forget them,” Noem said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called for Americans “to do the best we can, to understand what we can do to prevent any parent from having to receive the calls they received today.”

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey also warned against using the attack to lash out at transgender people, and addressed the issue of gun ownership in the United States. “Anybody who is using this… as an opportunity to villainise our trans community, or any other community out there has lost their sense of common humanity,” Frey told reporters.

“We’ve got more guns in this country than we have people, and it’s on all of us to recognise the truth and the reality that we can’t just say that this shouldn’t happen again and then allow it to happen again and again.”

With inputs from agencies

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