Madison, Wisconsin, school shooting suspect was in contact with man accused of plotting his own attack: report

The 15-year-old girl who police say killed a teacher and teen student in a shooting at a private Christian school in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday was in contact with a man in California whom authorities say was plotting a mass shooting with her, according to a report. 

The man, according to a restraining order obtained by the Associated Press, told FBI agents that he had been messaging Wisconsin shooter Natalie Rupnow about attacking a government building with a gun and explosives. The order doesn’t say what building he had targeted or when he planned to launch his attack. It also doesn’t detail his interactions with Rupnow.

The order was issued by a California judge on Tuesday against a 20-year-old Carlsbad man under the state’s gun red flag law. The order requires the man to turn his guns and ammunition to police within 48 hours unless an officer asks for them sooner because he poses an immediate danger to himself and others.

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Rupnow opened fire inside a study hall inside Abundant Life Christian School just before 11 a.m., according to Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes. He said responding officers found Rupnow with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. She died on the way to a hospital.

The Dane County Medical Examiner’s report identified Rupnow’s deceased victims as 14-year-old student Rubi Patricia Vergara and 42-year-old teacher Erin M. West.

The report stated that West, of Deforest, and Vergara, of Madison, were both pronounced dead at the scene and that preliminary results of the examinations confirm that both died as a result of “homicidal firearm related trauma.”

Six others were injured in the shooting, including two students who are in critical condition with life-threatening injuries.

According to an obituary, Vergara was a freshman at Abundant Life Christian School and was described as being “an avid reader, lover of art, and singing and playing keyboard in the family worship band.”

Vergara’s aunt told Fox News Digital that it has been a “very hard week” for their family, and they are trying to get through her niece’s funeral, which is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday in Madison.

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The Madison Police Department confirmed to Fox News Digital that two guns were recovered from the school following the shooting. However, only one gun was allegedly used by Rupnow.

During a press conference Tuesday afternoon, Barnes said “identifying a motive is our top priority.” He said the motive appears to be a combination of factors, but he did not elaborate any further.

“Every child, every person in that building is a victim and will be a victim forever. We need to figure out and try to piece together what exactly happened,” Barnes said. “We may never know what she was thinking that day, but we’ll do our best to try to add or give as much information to our public as possible.”

While Rupnow had two handguns, Barnes said he does not know how she obtained them and he declined to say who purchased them, citing the ongoing investigation.

No decisions have been made about whether Rupnow’s parents might be charged in relation to the shooting.

Police were speaking with Rupnow’s father and other family members, who were cooperating, and searching Rupnow’s home, Barnes said. He declined to offer additional details about the shooter, partly out of respect for the family.

Rebekah Smith, whose 17-year-old daughter is a student at the Abundant Life Christian School, told Fox News that she and her husband knew all the victims and their families.

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Smith said the teacher who was killed had a daughter who was in sports with the Smiths’ daughter, and they talked with the mother at the games all the time. 

She added that the victim had been a long-term substitute teacher at the school and just became a full-time teacher this year.

The school’s communication director, Barbara Wiers, said in a statement Wednesday evening that West worked as a substitute teacher for three years before accepting a position as the school’s substitute coordinator and an in-building substitute teacher.

She said Vergara had attended the school since kindergarten.

Fox News’ Greg Wehnerm, Stephen Sorace and the Associated Press contributed to this report.