President Trump said Thursday there many indications the Nikolas Cruz, the alleged shooter who killed 17 people at a Parkland, Fla., high school a day earlier, was disturbed and a threat to his community.
“So many signs that the Florida shooter was mentally disturbed, even expelled from school for bad and erratic behavior. Neighbors and classmates knew he was a big problem. Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!” Trump tweeted Thursday morning.
So many signs that the Florida shooter was mentally disturbed, even expelled from school for bad and erratic behavior. Neighbors and classmates knew he was a big problem. Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 15, 2018
Cruz, 19, had been expelled from his high school for disciplinary reasons. Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel described Cruz’s social media presence as “very, very disturbing.”
Cruz was escorted to prison Thursday morning.
Inspection of his social media profiles revealed many violence-related posts, including “I whana shoot people with my AR-15” and “I wanna die Fighting killing s**t ton of people.”
His Instagram page featured pictures of various guns he owned, as well as images in which his face was covered while holding long knives.
During Wednesday’s alleged shooting, Cruz showed up with at least one AR-15 style rifle and multiple magazines.
He bought the firearm within the past year and passed the background check, a U.S. official with knowledge of the investigation told CNN.
