The California man, alleged to have conspired with Wisconsin school shooter Natalie Rupnow in planning a coordinated attack, has been photographed for the first time. Alexander Paffendorf, 20, of Carlsbad, was arrested by FBI agents on charges of planning a coordinated mass shooting at an unspecified government building.
Court documents released on Wednesday reveal that Paffendorf admitted to communicating with Rupnow about carrying out an attack on a government building using firearms and explosives. On Tuesday, a San Diego judge imposed a restraining order against Paffendorf under California’s gun red flag law requiring him to surrender any firearms to police within 48 hours and prohibits him from purchasing any more.
Rupnow’s Accomplice Unmasked
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Later that evening, neighbors said that they saw over a dozen police vehicles arrive at Paffendorf’s apartment complex. Witnesses told CBS 8 that officers were seen leaving the building carrying what appeared to be a “black gun box.”
The restraining order does not specify which building Paffendorf had planned to target or when the attack was supposed to occur. It also provides no further details about his interactions with the 15-year-old Rupnow beyond saying that they were plotting a mass shooting together.
Public records indicate that Paffendorf lives at the raided property with his father. A court hearing for the 20-year-old is scheduled for January 3.
Paffendorf seems to have maintained a low-profile online presence, as no social media accounts linked to his name were found. However, a Facebook post believed to be from his father’s account described him as “touchy about getting his photo taken.”
It remains unclear how Paffendorf knew Rupnow. Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes told the Journal Sentinel that he had no details about Paffendorf’s arrest in California and referred inquiries to the FBI.
Authorities are still investigating the motive behind the actions of Rupnow, a 15-year-old student at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, who on Monday fatally shot a fellow student and a teacher before turning the gun on herself, Barnes said.
Motive Still Unclear
Two other students injured in the attack remain in critical condition as of Wednesday. The student killed in the shooting was identified in an obituary released Wednesday as Rubi Patricia Vergara, a 14-year-old freshman from Madison. According to the obituary, Rubi loved reading, art, singing, and playing the keyboard in her family’s worship band.
The Dane County medical examiner also identified the slain teacher as 42-year-old Erin Michelle West.
Barbara Wiers, the school’s communication director, shared in a Wednesday evening statement that Vergara had been a student at the school since kindergarten. She also noted that West had served as a substitute teacher for three years before taking on the role of substitute coordinator and in-building substitute.
“Our hearts are heavy with these losses,” Wiers wrote in an email to AP.
It remains unclear whether any of the victims were specifically targeted in the attack.
Barnes said on Wednesday that Rupnow was armed with two handguns during the incident but only used one to execute the shooting. He added that it is unclear how the 15-year-old acquired the firearms.
“We may never know what she was thinking that day, but we will do our best to try to add or give as much information to our public as possible,” he said.
Investigators are uncertain whether the attack was premeditated or if specific people were targeted, according to the police chief.
