Colt Gray, who authorities say killed four at the Apalachee High School on September 4, missed nine days of school after enrolling two weeks after classes commenced for the 2024 school year, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) revealed on Friday.
The GBI confirmed Colt Gray was enrolled at the high school on August 14, indicating he began attending two weeks after the Barrow County School System calendar indicates classes began.
The state law enforcement agency further revealed that Colt Gray missed nine days of school between August 14 and September 4.
If Colt Gray began attending Apalachee High School on August 15, the day after his enrollment, the school system’s calendar would indicate that he missed nine of the 12 possible days he could have attended school and was present in classes for just three days.
Shortly after the attack, it was claimed Colt Gray spent only two days on the Apalachee High School campus before the attack.
Authorities additionally revealed on Friday that Colt Gray rode a school bus to Apalachee High School on the morning of the attack, having allegedly concealed the rifle used during the attack in his backpack.
It was additionally confirmed by law enforcement that Colt Gray had a knife, though the GBI did not reveal what type of knife the 14-year-old allegedly brought to Apalachee High School. The school is not equipped with metal detectors.
The latest information from GBI comes after the agency confirmed on Thursday that, despite the weapon being legally purchased by his father, Colin Gray, there is no other person accused of helping Colt Gray bring the weapon into the school and that Colt Gray was allowed leave his classroom with his belongings after he asked his teacher to speak with someone at the Apalachee High School front office.
It remains unclear if this is why Colt Gray was not in the classroom when a school administrator attempted to locate the student and instead confiscated the backpack belonging to a similarly named pupil, but GBI states the alleged killer then evaded teachers in a bathroom until the attack began.
Marcee Gray, the mother of Colt Gray, said she contacted Apalachee High School on the morning of the attack after her son sent her a text message containing an apology, and a school counselor told her that Colin Gray made references to school shootings in one of his classes.
Both Colt Gray and Colin Gray remain in jail after the attack, with the 14-year-old charged with four counts of felony murder and his 54-year-old father charged with two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of involuntary manslaughter, and eight counts of cruelty to children.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Background Photo “School Lockers” by Marcus Quigmire. CC BY-SA 2.0.
