FBI blocked St. Louis shooter from obtaining gun, police say - The Washington Post

Police did not accidental wherefore the FBI had flagged Harris. The FBI did not instantly respond to a connection from The Post.

After being refused by the licensed dealer, Harris bought the AR-style firearm helium utilized during the rampage astatine Central Visual and Performing Arts High School from a backstage trader who had legally purchased the limb successful 2020, constabulary said. Police did not place the person. Harris died Monday successful a gunfight with police.

“There is nary existing instrumentality which would person prevented the backstage merchantability betwixt the archetypal purchaser and the fishy successful this case,” constabulary said.

The caller accusation tracing the gun’s way comes days aft constabulary shared that Harris’s parent called 911 connected Oct. 15 to accidental that helium had a weapon astatine his location and that she wanted removed. When constabulary arrived astatine Harris’s location astir 5 p.m. that day, they took the firearm from Harris and gave it to an adult who did not unrecorded successful Harris’s location and was legally allowed to carry, constabulary said.

Police did not place the big oregon reply circumstantial questions astir that person’s narration to Harris. Investigators are inactive trying to find however Harris was capable to get the limb helium utilized erstwhile helium broke into his alma mater connected Monday carrying 600 rounds of ammunition.

Officers did not prehend the firearm erstwhile they arrived astatine Harris’s location aft his mother’s telephone due to the fact that Missouri does not person a red-flag law, meaning officers did not person “clear authority” to confiscate the firearm that day, constabulary told The Post successful a connection Friday. A red-flag instrumentality authorizes officials to prehend a limb if a idiosyncratic is considered to beryllium a menace to aforesaid oregon others.

Harris struggled with his intelligence wellness and spent clip successful and retired of intelligence wellness programs, his household told police. His household often monitored his interactions with others, went done his message and checked his room, interim St. Louis constabulary commissioner Michael Sack said astatine a news conference Wednesday.

“They made each effort that they felt that they reasonably could,” Sack said astatine the quality conference. “I deliberation that’s wherefore the parent is truthful heartbroken implicit the families that paid for his episode.”