Shooter at Catholic Church in Minnesota Identified by FBI

The person who fired shots at a Catholic church and school in Minnesota on Aug. 27 was a transgender individual, the FBI announced.

“The shooter has been identified as Robin Westman, a male born as Robert Westman,” FBI Director Kash Patel said on X.

The shooting at Annunciation Church and School in Minneapolis left two children dead, two others in critical condition, and still others wounded, authorities said earlier Wednesday. All of the injured are expected to survive from a “range of injuries,” according to law enforcement.

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara told reporters in a briefing that the shooter killed himself.

Westman utilized a rifle, a shotgun, and a pistol in the attack and donned black clothing, the police chief said.

O’Hara also said that authorities had located a smoke bomb, or a firework that would release smoke, but had not found any explosives. Investigators are also analyzing additional firearms found at three residential locations related to Westman, O’Hara said.

“As we speak, we’re also aware of a manifesto that the shooter had timed to be released on YouTube. This manifesto appeared to show him at the scene and included some disturbing writings,” the police chief said. “That content has since been taken down with the assistance of the FBI, and it now remains under active review by our investigators.”

O’Hara said the Minneapolis police are working with their federal law enforcement partners to “uncover the full scope of what happened, to try and identify a motive, why it happened, and whether there are any other further details.”

Westman was 23 years old, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on X.

The shots were fired during a Mass attended by students and others, according to officials.

“The FBI is investigating this shooting as an act of domestic terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics,” Patel said.

When asked if the Minneapolis police were investigating the shooting as a “hate crime against Catholics,” O’Hara said, “We don’t have a motive or anything to suggest that.”

Later, when asked to confirm if the FBI was investigating the incident as “domestic terrorism,” O’Hara said that the FBI is on the ground and has been part of the entire investigation from the beginning.

“We are looking at, obviously, any possibilities from wherever the evidence will lead us from what we recover,” he said, adding that investigators are reviewing Westman’s alleged manifesto for a potential motive.

Earlier, authorities said Westman had approached the side of the church before shooting through the windows toward the people inside, likely firing all or most of the shots from outside the building before turning a gun on himself in the parking lot.

“This was a deliberate act of violence against innocent children and other people worshiping. The sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children is absolutely incomprehensible,” O’Hara said at a news conference.

Westman killed two children and injured 17 others. Two of the injured were in critical condition, authorities said. O’Hara said the shooting occurred as some children had already filed into their seats inside the church, while others were still entering the building.

Police have heard estimates on the exact number of people who were in the church at the time, but will release a more definitive number when it’s determined, O’Hara said.

Officials did not say whether Westman had any known connections to the school, but said he likely acted alone.

Noem said Westman, who identified as transgender, had written the phrases, “For the Children,” “Where is your God?”, and “Kill Donald Trump” on a rifle magazine.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told reporters that the shooting should not be an excuse for people to direct hate “at our trans community.”

“Anybody who is using this as an opportunity to villainize our trans community, or any other community out there, has lost their sense of common humanity. We should not be operating out of a place of hate for anyone,” Frey said. “We should be operating from a place of love for our kids. Kids died today. This needs to be about them.”

President Donald Trump was briefed on the shooting shortly after it occurred. He signed a proclamation ordering all flags at federal buildings to be flown at half-staff “as a mark of respect for the victims of the senseless acts of violence,” the White House wrote on X.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz called the shooting a “horrific act of violence” in a post on X.

“From the officers responding, to the clergy and teachers providing comfort, to the hospital staff saving lives, we will get through this together,” he wrote in another post.

Later in a news conference, Walz said he was grateful to Minnesota’s federal partners after receiving a call from Trump early Wednesday morning, “in an offer to provide the support to the folks here in Minnesota of what’s needed.”

He said the president was with his leadership team of Attorney General Pam Bondi and Vice President JD Vance. They expressed “their deep condolences amongst the horror that happened.”