SAN DIEGO (Aiexpress)— A California man apologized Friday for his connection to a 15-year-old girl who fatally shot a teacher and another student at a Wisconsin Catholic school, saying a judge he was willing to accept the consequences of his conduct but not defining his exact involvement.
Alexander Paffendorf expressed regret for his involvement when a judge gave him the opportunity to say his final words before keeping an order to confiscate his guns and ammo in effect until April 4. He did not go into detail in his brief statement, but investigators say he informed FBI agents that he had been emailing Natalie Rupnow, the Wisconsin shooter, about targeting a federal facility with a rifle and explosives.
Before shooting herself, the student at Madison’s Abundant Life Christian School killed 14-year-old freshman Rubi Patricia Vergara and 42-year-old instructor Erin Michelle West, as well as critically injuring two other students. Police have not revealed a motive.
A day after the Dec. 16 attack, a California judge issued a restraining order against Paffendorf, who was 20 at the time, under the state’s gun red flag legislation. He had to surrender in his guns and ammunition to the police. He has not been charged with a crime.
Paffendorf, who appeared on video in a collared shirt and tie, said Friday that he was ready for a hearing on whether the restraining order should be lifted, but San Diego Superior Court Judge Devon Lomayesva postponed consideration after an attorney for the city of Carlsbad, north of San Diego, said Pattendorf was under criminal investigation. The judge concluded that delaying the hearing was in Pattendorf’s best interests because he is under investigation and does not have an attorney.
A detective informed the judge that the FBI expected the inquiry to be completed within two to three months.
The restraining order does not specify which government facility Pattendorf targeted or when he intended to undertake his attack. It also did not go into depth about his interactions with the student, other than to say that he was planning a mass massacre with her.
