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Colt Gray was questioned in 2023 for threats
Newly released body camera footage shows an interview last year between Colton Gray, his father and deputies who received word of threats made online to shoot up a middle school one year before Gray allegedly went on a shooting spree at Apalachee High School.
JACKSON COUNTY, Ga. - New developments have emerged in last week’s deadly shooting at Apalachee High School as the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office released bodycam footage of an interview from last year with accused shooter Colt Gray and his father, Colin Gray, both of whom face charges related to the killings.
The footage, recorded in 2023, shows investigators questioning the father and son about an online threat to shoot up a middle school. Sheriff Janis Mangum, while expressing regret, maintains that her office’s investigation found no evidence substantiating the claim that Colt had threatened his school.
The FOX 5 I-Team has learned the tip came into the FBI, who passed it on to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff Mangum commented that her office notified schools in the area, but questions remain about whether any actionable steps were taken.
Despite expressing some regret, Sheriff Mangum stands by the investigation, insisting that her investigator couldn’t substantiate that Colt Gray had threatened his school.
In the video, Colt Gray, then a middle school student in Jackson County, is seen shuffling on his feet with a shorter haircut as he answers investigators' questions. The investigator discussed with Colin Gray the challenges Colt faced, including being bullied at school and his access to firearms—though, at the time, the ammunition was reportedly out of reach.
SEE ALSO: Accused Apalachee High School shooter's troubled home life, potential warning signs
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What we know about Colt Gray's home life
Leading up to Wednesday's deadly shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, court documents and police reports outline a troubled home life and potential warning signs of Colt Gray, the accused shooter.
Colt denied making any threats and claimed that his gaming app account, where the alleged threat was posted, had been hacked. Despite this, legal experts expect that the interview will play a significant role in the prosecution of Colin Gray. The teen’s grandfather revealed that seven months after the interview, Colin gave Colt an AR-15-style rifle as a Christmas gift.
Additional troubling details have surfaced, including a report from The Washington Post stating that just minutes before the shooting, Colt’s mother contacted a counselor at the high school, concerned about a comment her son had made that morning regarding a school shooting. A school official reportedly checked on the wrong student.
The 2023 interview with the sheriff’s office, in hindsight, is seen as a missed opportunity to intervene. Former Jackson County Sheriff’s Captain Dale Dillow later sent an email to the FBI, stating that the sheriff’s office had made area schools aware and would monitor Colt. However, Sheriff Mangum now admits that there is no documentation to confirm that this alert was actually communicated to the schools.
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Apalachee suspect's father charged: Is it a deterrent?
The attack at Apalachee High School on Wednesday appears to have the highest death count of any school shooting in Georgia history. Prosecutors responded with a legal move seen before in Michigan, when the parents of Ethan Crumbley faced charges, later convicted, after their son killed four people and injured seven at Oxford High School.
Last week, FOX 5 I-Team obtained an email from the Jefferson City Schools superintendent, which indicated that the school system had no knowledge of any online threats and no record of an investigation.
"I stand by the investigation. My regret is the school. If there was a breakdown in the school not notified, then of course I have a regret about that," Sheriff Mangum said. "But as far as the investigation at the time, there was nothing to substantiate the charges at that time."
The Jackson County School District, a separate entity from Jefferson City Schools, also confirmed that it never received any alert regarding Colt Gray.
As for Dillow, who assured her that the matter was addressed, he was fired later in 2023 over an unrelated incident. Sheriff Mangum acknowledged that, regardless of what transpired, the responsibility ultimately falls on her as sheriff.