Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow had a disturbing fascination with other school shooters before her deadly rampage

Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow had a disturbing fascination with other school shooters before her deadly rampage

Newly uncovered photos and online accounts allegedly linked to the teenage Wisconsin school shooter suggest – and even show to a T – a deeply disturbing obsession with other school shooters like Columbine killer Eric Harris -Shirt of his favorite band.

A now eerie snapshot of Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow, 15, was posted to her father’s Facebook page and shows her aiming a rifle at a shooting range wearing a shirt by German industrial rock band KMFDM.

Harris was seen in photos also wearing one of the band’s T-shirts before he and Dylan Klebold murdered 13 people in the 1999 Columbine HS massacre.

Newly revealed photos and associated social media accounts Facebook/Jeff Rupnow

The band’s acronym name loosely translates to “no pity for the majority”.

Like Harris and Klebold, Rupnow turned the gun on herself and died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after her rampage that killed another student and teacher at the K-12 Abundant Life Christian School in Madison on Monday.

The online posts and the image of her in the T-shirt have led to speculation that she may have drawn inspiration from the Columbine massacre – idolizing her teenage friends – and other notorious school shooters. Police say they are still working to uncover their exact motives.

An The Anti-Defamation League has linked him to other school shooters.

The account also shared videos of the 2015 school stabbing in Trollhättan, Sweden. Another disturbing post just days before the Madison killings includes a video of someone committing suicide at a shooting range, the outlet writes.

An account on the social blogging platform Tumblr, also believed to be connected to Rupnow, contains images of guns and other content related to school shootings, including a profile picture that appears to be a screenshot of surveillance footage of a shooting, authorities told ABC News.

The account also posted a picture of Parkland High School shooter Nicholas Cruz, and other posts mention a fatal 2007 school shooting in Jokela, Finland.


Follow The Post’s coverage of the school shooting in Wisconsin


A CashApp account also reportedly linked to Rupnow contains an image of the Columbine shooters.
Her father was asked by a Facebook user if that was “Kiddo” in his snap from the shooting range and replied: “Surely!!!!”

“We joined NBSC this spring and have loved every second of it!” said the father.

Other photos on Rupnow’s father’s Facebook page show her happily frolicking in the leaves with two dogs.
Police said she brought a handgun onto campus and opened fire in a classroom during class around 11 a.m.

The shooting may have been caused in part by bullying, cops said Tuesday – while officials added it was too early to say whether the killer’s parents could be charged with a crime.

Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes told reporters at a news conference that investigators are still working to determine what exactly motivated Rupnow to open fire on campus.

Rupnow was seen in photos wearing a T-shirt from the German industrial rock band KMFDM, which Harris also wore before he and Dylan Klebold murdered 13 people in the 1999 Columbine HS massacre. Getty Images

“There are always signs of a school shooting before it happens,” the police chief said.

“We are investigating their online activities,” he said. “We are asking anyone who knew her or who may have insight into her feelings up until yesterday to get in touch.”

“On the issue of bullying, we talk to students to see if bullying was one of the many factors I mentioned earlier,” he said.

Barnes said the department is still working to determine the authenticity of a “manifesto” widely shared online that has been attributed to the shooter.

In the unverified document, the author says: “I started to hate people and society, but it’s really not my fault, it never was.” But all you and the world have done to me is to trick me and to annoy. They cornered me without any help.”

Similar to Harris and Klebold, Rupnow then turned the gun on herself and died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after committing the rampage that resulted in Rupnow’s death JEFFERY PHELPS/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Barnes said, “We haven’t been able to verify that it’s authentic, but we definitely know it was published,” adding that his department is working with the FBI to investigate the writings.

The question remains as to how Rupnow managed to obtain the pistol used in the murders.
Wisconsin and federal law generally prohibit anyone under the age of 18 from owning a firearm.

Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway noted that it was “far too early” to determine whether Rupnow’s parents could end up facing criminal charges, acknowledging, “We don’t know nearly enough yet.”

Addressing the question of whether the shooter targeted a specific person in her morning rampage, Barnes said, “Everyone was targeted in this incident and everyone was put at equal risk.”

After the shooting, rumors began to surface about Rupnow’s gender identity and whether she may have been transgender.

A teenage student and a teacher at the school were the only known victims of Monday’s school shooting. WTMJ-TV

Barnes dismissed the discussion as “not important at all.”

“I don’t know if Natalie was transgender or not. And honestly, I don’t think it matters at all,” he said Monday.

“I don’t think what happened today has anything to do with how he or she wants to identify,” Barnes said.

The comments came as he was asked about a spate of unverified online posts claiming Rupnow was transgender, suggesting that played a role in the carnage.

The small Christian school she attended is staunchly conservative, rejects the theory of evolution and maintains that local government is chosen by God, according to her faith statement.

“I wish people would give up their personal prejudices,” the police chief lamented the rumors about Rupnow’s gender.

“We have lost members of our community. It’s something that may come to light later, but it has no relevance to what we do today at this point.”

Authorities said Rupnow shot up a room full of students of various ages at the K-12 school.
The status of six injured victims taken to local hospitals remained “unchanged,” he said.

Two injured teenagers were in “life-threatening” condition.

The other four injured are a part-time teacher and three students.

He also clarified a widely circulated claim that a second-grader made a 911 call reporting the shooting from inside the school. In fact, the call was made by a second grade teacher.

In a bizarre moment near the end of the press conference, Rhodes-Conway snapped at reporters as they asked questions about the victims.

“Okay, I’ll say this and then we’re done: It’s absolutely none of your business who got hurt in this incident,” she said.

“Please have some human decency and respect for the people who have lost loved ones or been hurt themselves or whose children have been hurt. Just have some common decency, people! Leave her alone. Let them grieve, let them recover. Let them heal. Don’t consume your pain.”

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