The student who killed seven people at Red Lake High School in Minnesota on March 21 acted alone, a federal law-enforcement official said last week.
In his first press briefing in weeks, Special Agent Michael Tabman of the Federal Bureau of Investigation on April 18 gave other information about the armed attack on the school on the Red Lake Indian Reservation by Jeff Weise, 16.
鈥淲hile some of [his] actions seemed random, the actions at school were planned,鈥� Mr. Tabman said. He did not disclose whether anyone knew about the attack beforehand, but he did say that Mr. Weise 鈥渨as in electronic communication with others.鈥�
FBI officials earlier arrested Louis Jourdain, 16, the son of the tribal leader, on conspiracy charges in connection with the shootings, and have subpoenaed a number of other students, according to press accounts.
The student fired some 45 rounds of ammunition in the attack, which took just nine minutes. At 2:49 p.m., Mr. Weise met security guard Derrick Brun at the entrance to the 270-student school, shot him, and within three minutes he had fatally shot teacher Neva Rogers and five students. For five more minutes, he wandered the school halls, firing at and wounding other students, Mr. Tabman said.
At 2:57 p.m., Mr. Weise exchanged gunfire with police, who hit him three times鈥攊n the lower back, the leg, and right arm. None of the officers was hit. At 2:58 p.m., Mr. Weise fatally shot himself in the head.
Students in the approximately 1,400-student district returned to school April 12.
