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A 20-year-old man was arrested in California after messages between him and Wisconsin school shooter Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow were discovered.
Alexander Paffendorf was questioned by the FBI after it was discovered he had previously told Rupnow that he would “arm himself with explosives and a gun that he would target a government building” according to an emergency restraining order received by the Milwaukee Sentinal Journal. It is believed that this was supposed to be some kind of coordinated attack.
On Tuesday, a judge approved the emergency order which requires Paffendorf to surrender any and all firearms and ammo and legally bars him from obtaining any more. Neighbors in Carlsbad, where Paffendorf lives, claim they saw police entering the apartment complex where the suspect reportedly lives.
“They had their full guns out all over the street,” Alex Gallegos told CBS 8. “There were cop cars. I’d say about 15 cops here.”
“I saw them carrying out the big box. I didn’t see them arrest anybody, but they gave high-fives as it came to an end.”
Rupnow is said to have armed herself with two handguns, though it is believed she only used one in the attack on Abundant Life Christian School. Substitute teacher Erin West, 42, and 14-year-old Rubi Patricia Vergara were tragically killed during the shooting. Six others were injured, two critically, in the horrifying attack. Rupnow eventually turned the firearm on herself and was declared deceased on the way to the hospital. Authorities still have no idea how Rupnow obtained the weapons used in the shooting, but it is reported that Rupnow’s father has been compliant during the investigation as law enforcement raided his home in search of answers.
It is also unclear how a 20-year-old California man came to know a 15-year-old girl from Wisconsin, and authorities are still investigating the connection.
Paffendorf is expected back in court on January 3.
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