The FBI is investigating the Minneapolis school shooting that left two children dead and 17 others injured as a possible anti-Catholic hate crime.
“The FBI is investigating this shooting as an act of domestic terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a post on X.
The two victims, aged eight and ten, were killed when an attacker opened fire through the windows of the city’s Annunciation Church on Wednesday morning as children were attending Mass.
The attacker, who died at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, was later named as 23-year-old Robin Westman.
Here is screenshot of the YouTube Channel along with a screenshot of him from a video he posted 4 years ago.
— Champagne Joshi (@JoshWalkos) August 27, 2025
He also posted a 20 minute video of him flipping through the manifesto. pic.twitter.com/kwJ5bSlvSl
Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope, said he was “profoundly saddened” by the Minneapolis school shooting, while Police Chief Brian O’Hara described it as “a deliberate act of violence against innocent children and other people worshipping.”
“The sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children is absolutely incomprehensible,” he said.
Police said they began receiving calls just before 08:00 local time (13:00 GMT). The attacker approached the side of the church and fired dozens of shots through the windows using three firearms – a rifle, a shotgun and a pistol. A smoke bomb was also found at the scene.
Authorities are investigating whether shots were fired inside the building, as no bullet casings were recovered from within.
Witnesses described hearing rapid gunfire. One 10-year-old boy told CBS affiliate WCCO that his friend saved him from bullets by lying on top of him. “My friend, Victor, saved me though, because he laid on top of me, but he got hit,” he said.
The Annunciation Church, located in southern Minneapolis, houses a private school for children aged 5 to 14. According to past school records, Westman’s mother previously worked there before retiring in 2021.
Court documents show Westman changed their name from Robert to Robin in 2020, identifying as female. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey cautioned against targeting transgender people in the aftermath of the shooting.
Meanwhile, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem referred to Westman as “a man, claiming to be transgender.” Patel also described the suspect as male in his statement.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said President Donald Trump and his team had expressed their condolences and offered assistance. Trump later ordered the US flag flown at half-mast at the White House in memory of the victims.
Source: BBC
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