Minneapolis School Shooting Investigated as Anti-Catholic Hate Crime

Federal authorities are investigating a deadly school shooting in Minneapolis that claimed the lives of two children and left 17 others injured, describing it as an act of domestic terrorism and an anti-Catholic hate crime.

FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed on X that the agency is treating the Wednesday morning attack at Annunciation Church, home to a Catholic school, as a targeted assault on the faith community.

The assailant, identified by police as 23-year-old Robin Westman, fired dozens of rounds through the church’s windows as children attended Mass. Armed with a rifle, shotgun, and pistol, Westman also left behind a smoke bomb. The attacker later died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The violence unfolded just after 8 a.m., at the start of a school term in Mass. The victims, two students aged eight and 10, were killed instantly, while others sustained injuries ranging from gunshot wounds to head trauma.

Outside the church, mourners gathered throughout the evening, leaving flowers and prayers in a scene marked by grief and anger.

Police Chief Brian O’Hara condemned the act as “deliberate violence against innocent children and worshippers,” calling it “sheer cruelty and cowardice.”

Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope, expressed his sorrow, saying he was “profoundly saddened” by the tragedy.

Survivors’ Harrowing Accounts

Witnesses described chaos as children fled the church. Neighbor Patrick Scallen recalled helping a girl with a head wound who pleaded, “Please hold my hand, don’t leave me.”

A 10-year-old boy told CBS affiliate WCCO that his friend shielded him from bullets by lying on top of him. “Victor saved me, but he got hit in the back,” the boy said, adding that his friend was recovering in the hospital.

Investigators revealed that Westman, whose mother once worked at the school, left behind an online note scheduled to publish at the time of the attack. The post has since been removed.

Court records show Westman legally changed name and gender identity in 2020. While some officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, publicly misgendered the suspect, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey urged against directing hatred at the transgender community in the aftermath.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said President Donald Trump offered condolences and federal support. Trump later ordered U.S. flags to be flown at half-mast in honor of the victims.

“This is all too common—not just in Minnesota but across the country,” Walz said. “No community or school should ever have to endure this.”