Father of Suspect In Georgia School Shooting Arrested

The father of the 14-year-old gunman, Colt Gray, who opened fire at a Georgia high school on Thursday was arrested. 

According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, 54-year-old Colin Gray was arrested and charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children on Friday.

Authorities say the charges stemmed from the father “knowingly allowing his son” to have a firearm. Colin Gray told law enforcement he bought his son the weapon as a Christmas gift in December 2023. 

“We’re heartbroken,” Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said at a news conference on Thursday, adding that the nine people wounded in the shooting are all expected to make a full recovery. 

#UPDATE : Suspect in custody.

Local hospitals have received multiple patients with gunshot wounds following a shooting at Apalachee High School.#Shooting #ApalacheeHighSchool #BarrowCounty #Georgia pic.twitter.com/qVbKEeJvOC

— upuknews (@upuknews1) September 4, 2024

Four killed at Apalachee High School in Georgia in mass shooting with AR-15 style rifle, 14-year-old suspect arrested.

The Sh**ter named Colt Gray has been on the FBI radar since 2023 pic.twitter.com/B0haEBl35S

— Sumit (@SumitHansd) September 5, 2024

His 14-year-old son, accused of killing two students and two teachers with an AR-15-style rifle, told investigators “I did it” while being questioned, the Barrow County sheriff said. The student faces four counts of felony murder, according to charging documents obtained by CNN. 

Colin Gray told investigators he purchased the gunused in the killings as a holiday present for his son in December 2023, according to two law enforcement sources. That would put the purchase months after authorities first interviewed the father and son as they investigated a school shooting threat. 

During a search of the suspect’s home, authorities found documents they believe were written by the suspect and referenced past school shootings, a law enforcement source tells CNN.