The suspect thought responsible for slaughtering six people at a Nashville school yesterday sent a chilling message to a friend moments before the killing.
Audrey Hale, 28, who identified as a male with he/him pronouns, messaged his pal Averianna Patton on the Instagram platform at 9.57am Monday morning.,
Hale told Ms Patton "this is my last goodbye" as he explained she would soon be reading about his death "on the news".
“One day this will make more sense,” Hale wrote.
“I’ve left behind more than enough evidence behind. But something bad is about to happen.”
Audrey Elizabeth Hale, 28, was killed by police at the scene and has since been confirmed as the shooter who shot dead six people at the Covenant School in Tennessee.
Images have emerged that appear to show Hale, who police said was transgender, though officials are yet to formally release any photograph of the shooter.
Police had searched Hale's house and found a detailed map of the school, including potential entry points, and evidence Hale had clearly done surveillance before the shooting.
Authorities also described Hale as a "lone zealot", who had written a manifesto ahead of the attack.
Hale is believed to be a former student at The Covenant School in Nashville, where they used two assault rifles and a pistol to kill six.
Metropolitan Nashville Police Chief John Drake said: “We have a manifesto, we have some writings we’re going over that pertain to this day, the actual incident.
“We have a map drawn out of how this was all going to take place.
“There’s right now a theory that we may be able to talk about later but it’s not confirmed, and so we’ll put that out as soon as we can.”
The three children killed were Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs and William Kinney, all 9 years old.
The adults killed were identified as Cynthia Peak, 61, a substitute teacher, Mike Hill, 61, a janitor, and Katherine Koonce, 60, who was the head of the school.
Police, who previously said the gunman appeared to be in their teens, have revealed the shooter was gunned down by officers who engaged them on the second floor of the Covenant School in Nashville, where they were firing on staff and students in a lobby.
Meanwhile, it has also emerged that the mum of the person identified as the Nashville school shooter had vehemently campaigned to prevent mass shootings in the classroom.
