Kahramanmaras, Turkey. Turkish police said a 14-year-old student who killed at least nine people at a school in southeastern Turkey used a WhatsApp profile image referencing 2014 U.S. mass killer Elliot Rodger. Authorities said the attacker wounded 20 others before taking his own life.
Attack details and police findings
Police said eight of those killed were the attacker’s fellow pupils. The shooting took place in Kahramanmaras province on Wednesday and was Turkey’s second school shooting in two days, in a country where such incidents are described as very rare.
In a statement on Thursday, the Turkish police department said initial findings showed the assailant used an image referencing Rodger, who killed six college students near Santa Barbara, California, in 2014. Police said initial findings indicated no connection to terrorism and that the incident was believed to be an individual attack.
Investigation into weapons and planning
The attacker used five pistols that belonged to his police officer father, according to a separate statement from the Kahramanmaras prosecutor’s office on Thursday. The court jailed the father pending trial, the prosecutor’s office said.
The prosecutor’s office said its examination found a document on the attacker’s computer dated April 11 indicating that a major attack would be carried out “in the near future”.
Detentions and social media actions
Police said 83 people across Turkey have been detained for “glorifying crime and criminals” since the school shootings on Tuesday and Wednesday. Authorities blocked access to 940 social media accounts and 93 Telegram groups for the same reason, police said.
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