Wisconsin school shooting latest: Student and teacher killed by Natalie Rupnow named as man detained in California
Erin Michelle West, 42, and Rubi Patricia Vergara, 14, have been named as the victims of the shooting at Abundant Life Christian School after Natalie ‘Samantha’ Rupnow opened fire
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A California man has been detained by authorities in connection to the school shooting in Madison, Wisconsin, as the student and teacher killed in the attack were named for the first time.
Teacher Erin Michelle West, 42, and Rubi Patricia Vergara, 14, were identified on Wednesday evening as the victims of the shooting at Abundant Life Christian School on Monday after Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow, 15, opened fire.
Vergara was a freshman at the school and “an avid reader, loved art, singing and playing keyboard in the family worship band,” according to the obituary released on Wednesday evening.
Meanwhile, a 20-year-old man identified by CBS 8 in San Diego as Alexander Paffendorf, has been detained by authorities in Carlsbad, California.
FBI agents detained Paffendorf after he told them he had been texting 15-year-old Rupnow around the time of the shooting, according to the report.
Paffendorf allegedly said he was attempting to coordinate an attack at a government building in San Diego during the shooting.
The Madison Police Department referred The Independent to the FBI San Diego when approached for further information.
The FBI declined to comment.
California man detained in connection with Madison school shooting: Report
Rubi Vergara, 14, named as student gunned down in Wisconsin school shooting
Wisconsin school shooting: What we know about ‘turbulent’ life of 15-year-old killer Natalie Rupnow- Younger, female and Midwestern: How Natalie Rupnow defied the typical descriptions of a school shooter
Neighbors of Wisconsin shooter describe the block’s new sadness
Neighbor Suzy De Wilde said she and her husband moved in about four years ago and that she regularly saw Natalie Rupnow hanging out in the park next to their property.
“Every day, I wash my dishes and I see that house,” she said. “It’s f*****g crazy that that’s where the shooter lived… Every day, I get to look at that front door now. How do you live with these reminders everywhere?”
Justin Rohrlich has the exclusive story.
Neighbors of Wisconsin school shooter Natalie Rupnow talk living near killer
Exclusive: “It’s f*****g crazy that that’s where the shooter lived,” Suzy De Wilde told The Independent. “... Every day, I get to look at that front door now.”
Recap: Who are the victims?
As of Tuesday morning, the only information to be officially released by police was that one was a student and one was a teacher.
Madison Police Department Chief Shon Barnes said authorities “don’t know” whether the pair were singled out by Rupnow, or whether they were simply caught up in the violence, adding that the shooter’s motivation may have been a “combination of factors.”
The shooting took place inside a study hall room where students of multiple grades were present.
Terrified little boy reveals horror of Wisconsin school shooting
Some of Abundant Life Christian School students who survived the attack have spoken out about the terrifying ordeal, with one little boy simply asking: “Why?”
Adler Jean-Charles, a sixth-grader at the school, was in an English lesson when gunshots rang out. The class of 11- and 12-year-olds were chaperoned to the side of the school after being told they were undergoing a lockdown drill.
“We heard them. And some people started crying,” Jean-Charles said in an interview with CNN on Monday. “And then we just waited until the police came and they escorted us out to the church.”
He added: “I was scared and [thinking], ‘Why did they do that? Why?’”
James Liddell has the full story.
Terrified little boy reveals horror of Wisconsin school shooting
‘I don’t think they will be OK for a long time, and I’m not,’ the mother of sixth-grader Adler Jean-Charles said
What we know about Rupnow’s ‘turbulent’ home life
Court documents show that Rupnow had a “turbulent” home life, according to the Washington Post.
Natalie Rupnow’s parents, Melissa and Jeff Rupnow, reportedly divorced and remarried multiple times. Their daughter enrolled in therapy to guide her through their custody arrangements, according to the newspaper.
The paper reported that the documents point “to an unsettled childhood for Rupnow, whose parents’ custody agreements sometimes forced her to move between their homes every two or three days.”
They reportedly divorced for the first time in 2014 and agreed to joint legal custody of their daughter. It was agreed that she would primarily live with her mother.
They remarried in 2017 and divorced for a second time in 2020. They were to divide custody of Natalie evenly, the court records reportedly show.
After they split up for the second time, they briefly remarried again. By April 2021, they were petitioning for a third divorce, the Post reports.
The Post was unable to reach Melissa Rupnow or Jeff Rupnow, who are both reported to be cooperating with police.
The teen’s father was speaking with police Monday evening, in what Barnes called a “long conversation.”
“We have no reason to believe they have committed a crime at this time,” Barnes said on Monday of the family.
The chief urged the public to disregard fast-moving, unverified online speculation that the shooter was transgender.
“I dont think that whatever happened today has anything to do with how she, or he, or they may have wanted to identify,” Chief Barnes said. “I wish people would kind of leave their own personal biases out of this. We have people who have yet another school shooting in Madison. That’s where my focus will be for the very near future.”
Star Wars actor shares heartbreaking headline in response to Wisconsin school shooting
Star Wars actor Mark Hamill has shared a heartbroken and evergreen headline after the United States was rocked by another school shooting, which has left three people dead.
A 15-year-old girl, who police identified as Natalie Rupnow, killed a teacher and fellow student after opening fire at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin. Rupnow was also pronounced dead at the scene, Department Chief Shon Barnes said.
Six others have been left injured, including two left in critical condition with life-threatening injuries. At the time of writing, Rupnow’s motives remain unclear.
Read the full story.
Star Wars actor shares heartbreaking headline in response to Wisconsin shooting
Three people have died and six have been left injured after the shooting
WATCH: Little girl reveals horror inside Wisconsin school during shooting
ICYMI: What happened at the Madison school shooting?
A Wisconsin school community has been left traumatized after a 15-year-old female student killed a teacher and another pupil in a shooting spree on Monday morning at a Christian school.
Police named Natalie Rupnow, also known as Samantha Rupnow, as the young woman who they believe killed two and injured six others at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin beginning around 11 a.m.
But even survivors lucky enough to escape with their lives “won’t be okay for a long time,” said one mother. An 8-year-old student who witnessed the panic and the wounding of a teacher told CNN: “I was really scared and I was really sad.”
Rupnow was found dead at the scene, with evidence of self-inflicted gunshot wounds, according to police. An official cause of death has not been determined, and police have not yet determined a motive.
Read the full story.
Two dead, two critical after shooting at Wisconsin Christian school
‘I’m asking everyone to send your heartfelt wishes and prayers, and thoughts, yet again, to a community — but this time it’s my community,” Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes told reporters
In pictures: Supporters at a candlelit vigil in Madison, Wisconsin
Republican rep with family at Madison school says they are doing ‘fine’ following shooting
A Republican representative whose great niece and nephew were present at the Abundant Life Christian School during Monday’s shooting says both children are doing “fine” following the horrific incident.
Assemblyman Jerry L. O’Connor told CNN’s John Berman that his great nephew “could hear bodies hitting the floor” and his great niece had heard gunshots from accross the hall.
Asked how the youngsters were doing, O’Connor said: “They're doing fine. I think it's going to be a little bit of time as they reflect back on what happened. My nephew could hear bodies hitting the floor. My great niece across the hall could hear gunshots.
“And as I understand it there were nine people in the room and the shooter shot eight of them... So it's a terribly sad situation. I also have a brother-in-law that's a basketball and golf coach there, and I have a brother whose brother-in-law is the school principal.
“So I have a lot of connections to this school and there are a lot of hurting families in that Madison area today.”