'I'm going to shoot up an elementary school': attacker posted on Facebook before Texas school shooting

Before killing 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Texas, Salvador Ramos sent several chilling messages on Facebook on Tuesday announcing the massacre he would carry out just 30 minutes later.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott said that Ramos made three posts on the social media platform before the shooting. A Meta spokesman later clarified that "the posts were private" and did not go out to the public, the Daily Mail reported.

About 30 minutes before the attack, Ramos wrote his first post saying that he would shoot his grandmother. The second message confirmed that he shot his grandmother, who is now in critical condition after being shot in the head.

"The third post, maybe less than 15 minutes before he got to the school, was 'I'm going to shoot up an elementary school,'" Abbott continued.

Meta spokesman Andy Stone confirmed on Twitter that "the text messages Governor Abbott described were private and were discovered after the terrible tragedy occurred."

"We are cooperating closely with law enforcement in their ongoing investigation," he added.

The messages Gov. Abbott described were private one-to-one text messages that were discovered after the terrible tragedy occurred. We are closely cooperating with law enforcement in their ongoing investigation.

— Andy Stone (@andymstone) May 25, 2022

Ramos, 18, fled the home he shared with his grandparents and crashed his vehicle near the elementary school. He entered through the back door with an assault rifle and tactical equipment.

On the same day of the shooting, Abbott said Ramos was carrying a handgun and an AR-15 rifle. "He shot and killed, in a horrible and incomprehensible way, 14 students and killed a teacher," he said before the other fatalities were confirmed.

The governor later reported that 19 of the victims were students. In addition, two teachers died: Eva Mireles, a teacher for 17 years, and Irma García, who had been at Robb Elementary School for more than 23 years.

Although little is known about Salvador Ramos, police shared a photo showing him as a young man with long black hair and a piercing gaze.

Ramos had posted an image on Instagram four days before the attack showing two semi-automatic shotguns with the magazine attached. The young man bought his guns immediately after turning 18 last May 16, according to State Senator Roland Gutierrez.

During high school, Ramos was bullied because he stuttered and had a lisp when he spoke, according to statements from family and friends, reported by the Washington Post. In addition, Ramos was absent from school for long periods of time, which is why he did not graduate with his classmates in his senior year.