The gunman who killed two children and injured 17 others during a Mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis has been identified as 23-year-old Robin Westman, a biological male who identified as a transgender woman and whose family legally changed his name from Robert as a child.
He had disturbing connections to the school where he carried out Wednesday’s attack.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara called Westman a “coward” who opened fire during a Catholic Mass welcoming young students to their first week of classes at the school. Westman died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the back of the church after shooting through the stained glass windows from outside the building.
Court records show that a Minneapolis juvenile named Robert Westman had his name changed to Robin in 2019 with the support of his parents. The court filing was made by his mother, Mary Grace Westman, who wrote that her “minor child identifies as female and wants her name to reflect the identification.”
Westman had attended Annunciation Catholic School through the eighth grade, according to reports from the Minnesota Star Tribune.
Mary Grace Westman, his mother, appeared on the school’s Facebook page in 2021 as the parish secretary ahead of her retirement party.
After completing eighth grade at Annunciation, Westman reportedly struggled to find a permanent high school placement and eventually attended the all-boys St. Thomas Academy. Following high school, he briefly worked at a marijuana dispensary before ending his life after attacking children.
Westman was armed with three legally purchased firearms during the attack – a rifle, shotgun, and pistol. Police Chief O’Hara confirmed that “all three had been lawfully purchased by the shooter” and that Westman had no prior criminal history. The chief noted that the weapons were purchased recently but did not provide a specific timeframe.
Disturbing videos posted by an account using the name Robin Westman were deleted from YouTube after the shooting. The videos showed handwritten pages of a notebook, weapons with messages painted on them, and commentary from the person filming them.
The manifesto-style videos were uploaded to YouTube on Wednesday morning, the same day as the shooting. Police confirmed they were aware of the manifesto that Westman had timed to be released, though the content on YouTube has been taken down and is under investigation.
Police were serving four search warrants in connection with the shooting – one at the crime scene and three at residences in the Minneapolis metro area. Additional firearms were recovered from the residential locations during the searches.
The senseless attack occurred during an “All-School Mass” that takes place each Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday morning according to the school’s website. Westman approached the church from the exterior and began shooting through the windows at children and worshippers sitting in pews.
Two children, ages 8 and 10, were killed in the attack. Of the 17 injured, 14 were children and three were adults. Multiple hospitals treated victims, with seven in critical condition requiring immediate surgery.
The shooting has been described by law enforcement as a “deliberate act of violence against innocent children and other people worshiping.” Police Chief O’Hara called it “absolutely incomprehensible” and emphasized “the sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children.”