Shooter At Christian School Sought ‘Child Executions’ In Response To ‘Oppression Of Palestinians’

The man who shot and critically wounded two kindergartners at a Christian school in Oroville, California, on Wednesday wrote that he was seeking out “child executions” in response to “America’s involvement in Genocide and Oppression of Palestinians,” according to authorities.

The shooter, who will not be named per Daily Wire policy, was identified as a 56-year-old man with a history of mental health issues and a lengthy criminal record. Action News Now reported that the Butte County, California, Sheriff’s Office obtained the shooter’s writings, which gave a motive for his attack on the Christian school.

The shooter’s writings read, “Countermeasure involving child executions has now been imposed at the Seventh-Day Adventist school in California, United States by the International Alliance. Lieutenant [shooter’s name] of the Alliance, carried out countermeasure in necessitated response to America’s involvement in Genocide and Oppression of Palestinians along with attack towards Yemen.”

Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea said authorities found no evidence of the “International Alliance” referenced by the shooter, adding that the shooter had a history of mental health issues. As a child, the shooter attended an Adventist school in the nearby town of Paradise. District Attorney Mike Ramsey said it’s possible that the shooter would have been charged with a hate crime if he had survived.

The shooter met with the principal at Feather River Adventist School in the early afternoon on Wednesday before opening fire and wounding two young boys before turning the gun on himself. The young victims were identified as 6-year-old Roman Mendez and 5-year-old Elias Wolford. Mendez was shot twice, resulting in internal injuries, and Wolford was shot once in the stomach, also resulting in internal injuries. Both boys remain in critical condition.

CHECK OUT THE DAILY WIRE HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

The shooter was a homeless man who moved around the Chico and Sacramento areas, CBS News reported. The 56-year-old white male was convicted of multiple crimes in the 1990s and early 2000s, including theft, fraud, and forgery. According to Sheriff Honea, the shooter also had a juvenile record.

Just last month, the shooter was arrested in South San Francisco after he was suspected of stealing a U-Haul truck. Law enforcement officers found him in the stolen truck, and he was transported to the San Bernadino County Jail. He pled not guilty and was released from jail on November 21. After he was released, the shooter stayed at various motels in the Chico area, which is about 30 miles north of Feather River Adventist School.

Days before the shooting, the 56-year-old homeless man called the Christian school to set up an appointment where he could discuss enrolling his grandson, according to Honea. After meeting with the principal on Wednesday, the shooter walked toward the exit, but then turned and walked back toward the playground as students were coming back into the building after a break. Honea said surveillance footage showed the shooter reach for his waistband, where Honea said he was holding a handgun. The shooter then began firing the gun and wounded two boys, ages 5 and 6.

The shooter’s first prison sentence in 1991 came after he was charged with cultivating marijuana and petty theft, according to CBS News. A little over a decade later, he stole the identities of multiple Butte County residents and charged credit cards thousands of dollars for rent, food, and entertainment, District Attorney Mike Ramsey said. After being arrested in 2002, police searched the shooter’s home and computer and found that he had searched for firearms and explosives, leading investigators to believe he was planning a mass incident with explosives, according to Ramsey.