The suspected shooter arrested after a rampage that killed 10 people at Santa Fe High School this morning used guns owned by his father and had planned to kill himself, Gov. Greg Abbott told reporters in an afternoon press conference.
He said the shooter, who police identified as 17-year-old Dimitrios Pagourtzis, used a shotgun and a .38 caliber revolver, and that he did not legally possess them.
“I have no information at this time whether the father knows the weapons were taken,” the governor said.
Abbott said earlier reports that the shooter used an AR-15 style rifle were wrong.
There are two other people of interest in the case, he said. One was at the scene and had “suspicious reactions,” he said, and officials were unsure whether that person was involved in the attack. The other person is being interviewed, and Abbott said that person will not be identified at this time.
In addition to the 10 dead, 10 others were wounded, Abbott confirmed.
Two federal search warrants are being sought to find explosive devices at two residences. Police earlier said Pagourtzis brought some devices into the school and it was unclear whether any went off.
There also is a search warrant out for Pagourtzis’ vehicle. He had written in journals and on his computer that he wanted to commit the shooting and commit suicide afterward, Abbott said.
The teen had no previous criminal history and there were no warning signs of the attack, he said.
The governor wants to convene a roundtable on mass shootings, to include people who can bring “a diversity of thoughts and concerns,” he said. He wants to hear from families of victims and victims themselves, as well as those who want gun laws protected.
Abbott had prepared a policy paper he would present next week on gun safety, involving rapid background checks, resources at schools such as increased security, and ways to address mental health issues through schools.
The high school’s plan by is to have two police officers on campus, as was the caseat the time of the shooting, Abbott said.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick of Houston offered remarks saying a response should be focused on access to schools and retrofitting schools to protect against attacks.
Pagourtzis, a junior, shared photographs on a now-defunct Facebook page of a T-shirt that said “born to kill” and clothes adorned with German nationalist iconography.
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SOURCE: Houston Chronicle
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