Colin Gray bought the gun in December 2023 as a Christmas present for his son.
The father of the 14-year-old suspect in a Georgia school shooting that killed four people Wednesday has been arrested, after authorities say he “knowingly and intentionally” allowed his son to possess the murder weapon. Colin Gray, 54, has been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children, authorities said Thursday.
“These charges stem from Gray knowingly allowing his son Colt to possess a gun,” Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey said at a news conference.
His son, Colt Gray, has been charged with four counts of murder and will be tried as an adult, Hosey said.
The shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder left two teachers — Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53 — and two 14-year-old students — Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo — dead. Two teachers and seven students were also wounded in the attack.
Investigators say Gray used an “AR platform weapon,” a semi-automatic rifle, to carry out the shooting.
DailyExpertNews reported that Colin bought the rifle as a Christmas present for his son in December 2023. The rifle was purchased at a local gun store as a Christmas present, DailyExpertNews reported in a report.
The suspect was questioned by police last year following online threats about committing a school shooting.
Hundreds of school and college shootings have occurred in the US over the past two decades, heightening debate over gun laws in the country.
“We have to stop it”
US Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party's presidential candidate, called the shooting in Georgia a “senseless tragedy”.
“We have to stop it. We have to end this epidemic of gun violence,” she said at a campaign event.
The White House said in a statement that US President Joe Biden had been briefed on the shooting and that “his administration will continue to work with federal, state and local officials as we receive more information.”
“Jill and I mourn the deaths of those whose lives were cut short by yet more senseless gun violence and think of all the survivors whose lives were changed forever,” Biden said in a statement, urging Republicans to work with Democrats to pass “sound gun safety legislation.”
Former US President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, called it a “tragic” event.
“These beloved children were taken from us far too soon by a sick and deranged monster,” he wrote on social media.
