Minneapolis shooting 'heroes' shielded praying school children from bullets

Brave people shielded children from flying bullets during a sickening shooting at a school.

Two children aged eight and 10 were killed in the shootingat a Minneapolis Catholic school as children prayed during Mass. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the shooter, armed with a rifle, shotgun and pistol, approached the side of the church and shot through the windows toward the children sitting in the pews during Mass at the Annunciation Catholic School.

School Principal Matt DeBoer said teachers reacted within “seconds” of the terrifying situation beginning, adding his staff were “heroes”. Addressing the community at a press briefing today, he said: "To any of our students, families, and staff watching right now, I love you. You're so brave and I'm so sorry this happened to us today."

READ MORE: Minneapolis shooting UPDATES: Shooter Robin Westman's mum worked at school

“Within seconds of this situation beginning, our teachers were heroes. Children were ducked down, adults were protecting children, older children were protecting younger children, and as we heard earlier it could have been significantly worse without their heroic action,” he said.

Hennepin Healthcare, the main trauma hospital in Minneapolis, said in a statement that they received 10 patients, including several children, ages six through 14, and two adults. Seven were considered to be in critical condition.

Three elderly parishioners were among those wounded.

Children’s Minnesota, a pediatric trauma hospital, said it admitted several children ages nine through 16. Chief O’Hara said all of the victims are expected to survive, though they have a range of injuries.

Principal DeBoer said what happened was a “nightmare”. He said: “This is a nightmare, but we call our staff the dream team, and we will recover from this, we will rebuild from this. When we planned for this school year, we intentionally chose a theme from the Prophet Jeremiah Chapter 29 - a future filled with hope.

“There’s nothing about today that can fill us with hope. We as a community have a responsibility to make sure that no child, no parent, no teacher ever has to experience what we’ve experienced today, ever again, I need everybody to commit those words to your speech patterns, never again.”

He described the two deceased children as “angels” and asked people to pray for those still in care. Addressing the tragedy, he said: "We lost two angels today. Please continue to pray for those still receiving care. We can't change the past, but we can do something about the future."

He added: "I ask you to please pray, but don't stop with your words. Let's make a difference and support this community, these children, these families, these teachers - never again can we let this happen. I love you Annunciation Family, we’re with you and we will be stronger when this is done.”

The shooting saw the school evacuated and students’ families were later directed to a “reunification zone” at the school. President Donald Trump and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said in separate social media posts that they had been briefed on the shooting.

The White House said in a post on X that Trump signed a proclamation Wednesday afternoon ordering flags to be lowered at all government buildings until sunset on Sunday “as a mark of respect for the victims of the senseless acts of violence.”

And Chief O’Hara identified the shooter as 23-year-old Robin Westman, adding that Westman had no prior criminal history and law enforcement believes they acted alone. Local media has reported the shooter attended the Annunciation School for at least a year.

And Westman's mum had worked at the church in the past, but retired a few years ago. The Minneapolis Police Chief confirmed Westman ditched their car near the scene before committing the horrific crime.

Cops added that they will be searching the car and three properties linked to the shooter. Investigators are now also examining a chilling digital trail left behind before the massacre.

A YouTube account, since deleted, and believed to have belonged to Westman, contained a 20-minute manifesto uploaded just hours before the attack. According to US reports, one video believed to have been posted by the shooter showed the phrases "kill Donald Trump" and "for the children" scrawled across gun magazines.

Other clips uploaded to the same channel revealed images of a semi-automatic rifle and a shotgun. O'Hara said police were aware of a manifesto Westman posted on YouTube before the horror incident and said cops worked with the FBI to have it removed from the internet.

The Police Chief added that his department had not confirmed a motive behind the attack but said they were going through the video and searching three properties to help that investigation. O’Hara confirmed the three guns used by the shooter had been purchased "recently".

He also revealed Westman bought all three legally and cops were looking to search through three residential spaces to look for more possible arms. Westman used three guns - a pistol, a shotgun and a rifle, O’Hara also said. He added that these firearms were legally obtained by Westman and there was no indication any other suspects were directly involved.