Two days after a shooter took the lives of two children attending Mass during their first week of school, the Minneapolis community is mourning its deep losses and still searching for answers about the attacker's motives.
An 8-year-old and 10-year-old were killed in the mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church, which includes a school for grades preschool through 8th, the morning of Aug. 27. Another 18 people were injured, including 15 children and three parishioners in their 80s, authorities said.
The children killed were identified by family and media outlets as Fletcher Merkel, 8, and Harper Moyski, 10.
The shooter fired dozens of rounds through stained-glass windows toward children sitting in pews during a service to celebrate the return to the school year. Investigators said 23-year-old Robin Westman was "obsessed with the idea of killing children" and expressed hatred toward several groups in writings being combed through. They have not yet identified a motive.
The FBI said it is is investigating the shooting as an "act of domestic terrorism and a hate crime targeting Catholics."
