20-Year-Old Man Linked to Wisconsin School Shooting Suspect Allegedly Planned Attack on Government Building | US News
A man who had communicated with a female student who opened fire at a private religious school in Wisconsin, resulting in the deaths of two individuals before reportedly taking her own life, has been apprehended in the United States.
A 20-year-old man from California revealed to the FBI that he had been exchanging messages with Natalie Rupnow, age 15, concerning plans to attack a government building using a firearm and explosives. This information was disclosed in a restraining order issued under the state’s gun red flag law.
Following the order, a judge mandated that the man surrender his firearms and ammunition within 48 hours, citing that he presented an immediate threat to himself and others.
The restraining order was issued on Tuesday, the day after Rupnow opened fire at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, where she killed a student and a teacher and injured six others.
Among the injured, two individuals remain in critical condition.
The court documentation does not disclose the name of the California man or specify which building he intended to target, when he planned to carry out his attack, or the specifics of his conversations with Rupnow.
Two individuals lost their lives in the attack. Pic: AP
Rubi Patricia Vergara, 14, from Madison, was identified in an obituary released on Wednesday as one of the victims of Monday’s shooting.
The obituary described Vergara as “an avid reader who loved art, singing, and playing the keyboard in the family worship band.”
The teacher lost in the incident was identified as 42-year-old Erin Michelle West, as confirmed by the Dane County medical examiner on Wednesday evening.
Barbara Wiers, the school’s communication director, noted that Vergara had attended the school since pre-school, while West had served there as a substitute teacher for three years before becoming a full-time substitute.
A candlelight vigil was held for the victims in Madison on Tuesday. Pic: AP
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‘I’m very aware the world is like this’
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes stated that law enforcement officials “may never fully understand what she [Rupnow] was thinking that day.”
He further remarked, “It’s unclear if she decided that day to act or if she had been planning it for a week prior. To me, bringing a gun to school with the intent to harm is indicative of planning, but we do not know the extent of her premeditation.”
According to Chief Barnes, Rupnow had two handguns; however, he could not provide details on how she acquired them or the identity of the purchaser due to the ongoing investigation.
Online court records indicate that neither of her divorced parents, Jeffrey and Mellissa Rupnow, have any criminal cases against them.
Records from their divorce reveal that Natalie primarily resided with her father and underwent therapy in 2022, although the reasons were not disclosed.
This shooting incident is the latest in a series of numerous school shootings across the U.S. in recent years, including particularly severe cases in Newtown, Connecticut; Parkland, Florida; and Uvalde, Texas.
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However, the Wisconsin shooting is notable because incidents involving school shootings committed by teenage females are exceedingly rare, with most occurrences being carried out by males in their teens and twenties, according to David Riedman, founder of the K-12 School Shooting Database.
