Wisconsin 'school shooter' pictured for first time after 'killing two and taking her own life'

17 December 2024, 22:26

A 15-year-old girl suspected of killing three people including herself and critically injuring six others in a Wisconsin school shooting has been pictured for the first time.

Police identified the Madison, Wisconsin shooter as Natalie 'Samantha' Rupnow, a student at the Abundant Life Christian school where the attack took place.

A teacher and a student were killed in the shooting, Rupnow is believed to have died in an ambulance following the attack.

She was reportedly found wounded from a self-inflicted gunshot in the wake of the killings.

Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes confirmed that two of the six people injured in the rampage remain in critical condition.

Police have yet to determine a motive for the attack, which they said could be down to "a combination of factors".

Officers said they were aware of claims that Rupnow had written a manifesto. They were also trying to piece together a timeline of her final hours.

Rupnow's parents had separated and she lived mainly with her father Jeff Rupnow, who is cooperating with police.

It's unclear if the weapon that Rupnow used was owned by her parents, and how she got her hands on it.

Read more: Two children killed and four injured during shooting at 'makeshift club'

Read more: Pictured: Woman killed in London ‘church wake drive-by’ as hunt for gunman continues

Speaking of Mr Rupnow, Chief Barnes said: “He lost someone as well. And so we're not going to rush the information, we'll take our time and certainly do our due diligence."

Barnes added he had no knowledge of any previous incidents involving Rupnow.

“I think if there were, we certainly would have had some type of intervention, but I'm not aware of that,” he said.

“We know that the suspect shooter was a teenage student who attended the school,” Barnes added.

“Again, as difficult as today is, that's still someone's child that's gone, that's still someone that has to deal with what happened today. And so we want to make sure that we can ensure as much cooperation as we can,” he added.

“Why did this happen? What do we know? What was the motivation?

“I do not know.”

Abundant Life was not a place where authorities expected this kind of violence to occur, Barnes told reporters on Monday.

“We do not know that the shooter had any prior contact with law enforcement. But I did do a check of the school,” he said.

“There were some calls, but they were like 911 hang-ups, things of that nature. There was nothing that suggested that the school was a place that violence would occur.”

A handgun was discovered at the scene of the shooting, police confirmed.

Police arrived on the scene at around 11am local time (5pm UK time). The school is near a police training centre.

Officers did not fire their weapons during the incident.

The school has about 390 students, from nursery to secondary school, according to its website.

Mr Barnes added: "I'm feeling a little dismayed now, so close to Christmas.

"Every child, every person in that building is a victim, and will be a victim forever. These types of trauma don't just go away.

"My heart is heavy for Madison and we have to come together as a community and find out what happened here and make sure it doesn't happen in any other place that should be a refuge for students in our community."

Madison is a city of around 280,000 people. It is about 150 miles north-west of Chicago. Abundant Life Christian School is on the east side of the city.