The Texas Gunman Who Posted 'Gun Photos' on SNS and Made Threatening Comments Like "I Will Kill" Indicating Criminal Intent

A video posted by Salvador Ramos, the perpetrator of the mass shooting in Texas, USA, on his social media shows him handling an object that appears to be a magazine for an assault rifle. Photo by AFP, Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Se-eun] Circumstances have emerged indicating that the perpetrator of the elementary school shooting in Texas, USA, which occurred on the 24th (local time), had hinted at the crime multiple times.

The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 27th (local time) that the perpetrator, Salbador Ramos (18), had hinted at the crime days or even weeks before the incident occurred.

It was confirmed that Ramos purchased two assault rifles as soon as he turned 18 and posted this fact on the social networking service (SNS) Instagram.

Additionally, Ramos showed a German girl he met via video chat scenes of himself visiting a gun store and opening a box of ammunition.

Just before the crime on the 24th, he also sent messages to the girl that seemed to hint at the shooting incident.

A 17-year-old girl from California also said, "I got to know Ramos online," and added, "He suddenly showed me pictures of guns, which scared me. At some point, he started leaving comments saying he would kill me or that he hated me."

Moreover, Ramos exhibited behavior such as asking a family member to buy a gun in September last year and telling acquaintances in March this year that he was going to buy a gun. One acquaintance reportedly even asked him directly, "Are you planning to carry out a shooting at a place like a school?"

There are opinions that if acquaintances had recognized Ramos's pre-crime signals and reported them, preventive measures could have been taken to avoid the actual tragedy.

However, experts responded that since not everyone who exhibits suspicious behavior actually commits a crime, it can be difficult for individuals to decide whether to report such behavior.

In fact, the German girl said, "Ramos did not explicitly reveal his plans," and only after the incident did she understand the meaning behind his statements.

A girl who was a high school classmate of Ramos also explained, "After I rejected Ramos's date proposal, I received messages from him saying he would hurt me, but I did not feel threatened," adding, "No one thought he was evil enough to commit such an act."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.