Newly available bodycam footage captures police interviewing Colt Gray and his father over a year prior to the tragic incident where the 14-year-old is alleged to have shot four individuals and injured nine others at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia.

Colt Gray faces four counts of felony murder. His father, Colin Gray, has been apprehended and charged with two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of involuntary manslaughter, and eight counts of second-degree cruelty to children. Both appeared together before a judge in Barrow County on Friday and are currently in custody.

Colt Gray is believed to have killed his peers, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both aged 14, along with math teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53, during the shooting at Apalachee High School on Wednesday.

According to prosecutors, Colin Gray becomes the first parent in Georgia to face charges related to his child’s perpetrated attack. “These accusations arise from Mr. Gray knowingly permitting his son, Colt, to possess a weapon,” stated Chris Hosey, Director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

The footage shows interactions between Gray and deputies from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office in May 2023, following a tip about online threats involving school shooting imagery and firearms.

The threats were reported on a Discord account linked to Colt Gray through an email address, prompting county authorities to alert local schools and advise Colin Gray to keep his son at home. However, there was not enough evidence for an arrest, according to the FBI’s Atlanta Division.

In the bodycam video acquired by YSL News, Colt’s father acknowledged that the guns in their home were accessible to his son but insisted he was teaching him about gun safety.

“He understands the seriousness of firearms and their potential dangers,” said Colin Gray, adorned with a silver cross necklace and holding a can during his conversation with officers outside his residence.

“We often go shooting and hunt deer. He even shot his first deer this year,” he mentioned. He shared a photo on his phone showing his son with blood on his cheeks after his first successful hunt.

The elder Gray expressed disbelief regarding the threats made by his son, remarking that both he and Colt took the situation seriously.

“I’d be extremely upset if he were involved, which would mean all the guns had to go,” he stated.

Colin Gray’s charges come in the wake of recent sentences handed down to the parents of Michigan school shooter Ethan Crumbley, highlighting a rising trend of holding parents accountable when their children engage in mass shootings.

Colt Gray Associated with Username Alluding to Sandy Hook Shooter

Investigators noted the Discord account’s username, translated from Russian letters to read “Lanza,” referencing Adam Lanza, the shooter responsible for the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in 2012.

The teenager denied having made any online threats, claiming he last utilized a now-deleted Discord account months prior. “I only have TikTok where I just watch videos,” he stated.

Colin Gray informed the officers that his son had been facing bullying at school.

He recounted that during a visit to the school three days earlier, he expressed to the principal that Colt “gets anxious under stress” and “doesn’t think clearly,” urging them to provide support as he navigated seventh grade.

According to the video, an officer from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office informed Colin Gray that the Discord account was linked to his former address.

In response, Gray told the officers that they had moved following an eviction from their prior home. He explained how his wife, Marcee Gray, took their two younger children to live with her mother while he and Colt resided in a rental property. “He had a tough time with the separation and everything,” Gray noted.

The release of this video comes shortly after reports revealed that Marcee Gray contacted the Apalachee High School counselor regarding an urgent situation, expressing that her son needed immediate assistance just half an hour before he allegedly opened fire. The call lasted about ten minutes, according to the Washington Post.

Colt Gray’s grandfather, Charles Polhamus, shared with the New York Post that Marcee Gray hurried to the school upon receiving a message from her son saying, “I’m sorry, mom.” Neither Brown nor Polhamus provided further comments to YSL News, and attempts to reach Marcee Gray were unsuccessful.

Cybele Mayes-Osterman is a breaking news reporter for YSL News. Follow her on X @CybeleMO.