Everything we know about the Parkland High School shooting suspect…

by SooperMexican

Early on after the horrible shooting in Parkland, Florida, police apprehended a suspect they believe might be the shooter.

The police have confirmed the suspect’s name:

He was caught about a mile away from the school and was a former student of the school. He was caught wearing a burgundy shirt, which matched a description of the shooter.

A troubled kid, according to one witness:

Remember, he’s just a suspect, there’s not enough evidence at this point to know if he’s absolutely the shooter, and it’s irresponsible to draw hasty conclusions on so little information.

From CBS:

The suspect, who had “at one time” attended the school but was no longer enrolled, was taken into custody without incident off campus, Israel said. He is about 18 years old, according to Israel.

A male that fit the description of the suspect was seen being taken into custody, CBS News’ Jeff Pegues reports. He was later transported to the hospital and seen being wheeled into the facility on a gurney.

Superintendent says he was a former student:

Fox News is now reporting that Cruz was told to not come onto campus with a backpack because he had been threatening students.

UPDATE 1: 

More about his past from school officials:

A teacher at the school told the Miami Herald that Cruz, 19, had been identified as a potential threat to fellow students in the past. Math teacher Jim Gard says he believes the school administration had sent out an email warning teachers that Cruz had made threats against other teenagers in the past and that he should not be allowed on the campus with a backpack. Another student interviewed on the scene by Channel 7 said the student had guns at home.

“We were told last year that he wasn’t allowed on campus with a backpack on him,” said Gard, who said Cruz had been in his class last year. “There were problems with him last year threatening students, and I guess he was asked to leave campus.”

END UPDATE

Now this is just pure speculation – there are two Instagram accounts purportedly of the suspect. They are not confirmed.

This seems less likely to be his because of the extra last name, but people are posting it because the guy has a Trump hat:

This seems more likely just because the name is more similar:

https://twitter.com/Virginia_Girl57/status/963899076180889612

And what’s odd is that one picture has a reference to Islam.

So… I caution people against making hasty generalizations. You don’t get extra points for having the fastest, hottest take.

Here’s how the story developed on social media, from our earlier post.

UPDATE 2: 

A member of “Resistance” groups on Facebook including “Syrian Resistance groups and fighter groups out of Iraq.”

This is from Fox News though, and unfortunately, they can be unreliable on this stuff, just like everyone else.

END UPDATE

We’ll update as necessary.


Comment Policy: Please read our comment policy before making a comment. In short, please be respectful of others and do not engage in personal attacks. Otherwise we will revoke your comment privileges.