Newly-released bodycam video from 2023 shows the teenager accused of killing four people at Apalachee High School in Georgia being interviewed along with his father by police.
The May 2023 interview, conducted by a deputy from the Jackson County Sheriff's Office more than a year before last week's deadly shooting, came after Colt Gray allegedly made online threats to "shoot up" an area middle school. The teen's father, Colin Gray, was also present in the interview, which was held on their front porch.
During the interview, which was filmed by the deputy's body-camera, the teen denied having made the threat.
"I would never say something like that," he told the deputy.
In the recently released footage, Colin Gray says that his son knows how to handle weapons
"He knows the seriousness of weapons and what they can do and how to use them and not use them," Colin Gray said.
After the interview, the investigation into the threats was closed for lack of evidence.
A few months later, in December 2023, Colin Gray allegedly gave his teenage son an AR-style rifle as a Christmas present. Police and federal agents are investigating if it was the weapon used in the shooting, according to four federal law enforcement sources close to the investigation.
Now, both are facing criminal charges. The teen has been charged with four counts of murder, with more charges expected to be filed, officials said. Colin Gray was arrested the following day and charged with two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of involuntary manslaughter and eight counts of cruelty to children.
"These charges stem from Mr. Gray knowingly allowing his son, Colt, to possess a weapon," Georgia Bureau of Investigation director Chris Hosey said in a news conference after the arrest.
Other family members attempted to raise the alarm before the shooting. Charlie Polhamus, the suspect's grandfather, said that his wife went to the high school to talk about her grandson just the day before.
The day of the shooting, the teen's mother, Marcee Gray, called the school after receiving a text from her son, Polhamus said. The boy's aunt, Annie Brown, told the Washington Post that her sister had texted her saying she spoke with a school counselor and urged them to "immediately" find her son to check on him.
"She did call the school and told them to act quickly," Brown told CBS News, declining to give further details.
Anna Schecter contributed to this report.
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