On Monday morning at the Covenant School in Nashville, Officer Rex Englebert, who has served in the MNPD for four years, and Officer Michael Collazo, who has been in the MNPD for nine years, stepped in to stop the school shooter .
Following a shooting at a school Monday morning in Nashville, several children and adults lost their lives. The Metro Nashville Police Department reported that three students and three adults were fatally shot at the Covenant Presbyterian School.
The suspect, identified as a 28-year-old former student of the school named Audrey Hale, arrived on campus driving a Honda Fit and was heavily armed with three rifles, two of which were assault weapons.
Surveillance footage indicates that Hale fired into the church and school through doors in the side of the building. An investigation into the incident is currently underway.
At 10:13 a.m., the first 911 call reporting gunshots in the building was made, prompting officers to rush onto campus and begin clearing the building. Gunshots were then heard emanating from the second level.
It was on the second floor, in a common area, that a group of officers encountered Audrey Hale firing her gun through a window at oncoming police cruisers. Constables Rex Englebert, who has served in the Metro Police for four years, and Michael Collazo, who has served in the Metro Police for nine years, shot and killed Hale at 10:27 a.m. during the encounter.
An officer was injured due to broken glass during the incident. MNPD chief John Drake said the shooter left a manifesto and maps, leading investigators to suspect the shooting was targeted.
The victims of the shooting have been identified as Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs and William Kinney, all aged 9, as well as Cynthia Peak (61), Katherine Koonce (60) and Mike Hill (61). The school released a statement regarding the day’s events on Monday evening.
A statement from The Covenant School:
Our community is heartbroken. We mourn a tremendous loss and are in shock at the terror that destroyed our school and our church. We focus on loving our students, families, faculty, and staff and beginning the healing process.
Law enforcement is investigating, and while we understand there is a lot of interest and there will be a lot of talk and speculation surrounding what happened, we will continue to give the priority to the well-being of our community.
We appreciate the outpouring of support we have received and are extremely grateful to the first responders who acted quickly to protect our students, faculty and staff.
We ask for confidentiality as our community grapples with this terrible tragedy – for our students, parents, faculty and staff.
#Metro #Nashville #Police #released #surveillance #footage #Nashville #shooting #suspect #Audrey #Hale #opening #fire #Covenant #School
