THE suspect accused of gunning down six people, including three children, at a Tennessee elementary school on Monday has been identified.
The Metro Nashville Police Department identified the Covenant School mass shooter as Audrey Hale, 28.
Authorities said Hale, a former student at the small private Christian academy, gained access to the elementary school after shooting through one of the academy doors at around 10.13am on Monday.
The 28-year-old suspect, who cops said identified as transgender, was armed with two assault-type rifles and a handgun.
Metro Nashville officers responded quickly to the scene and immediately heard gunfire on the second floor.
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"Officers went to the gunfire. When they got to the second floor and saw the shooter, a female," Metro Nashville police spokesperson Don Aaron said.
A five-member unit "engaged" with Hale in a lobby area of the second floor and took down the suspect by 10.27am.
MNPD Chief John Drake said that Hale targeted the school and was in possession of multiple rounds of ammunition and was "prepared to engage with law enforcement."
Drake later said that two of Hale's guns are believed to have been obtained legally.
Students were quickly evacuated into a wooded area and fire hall as the shots rang out, Drake said.
The "calculated and planned" shooting left three children and three adults dead from gunshot wounds.
The victims were identified as students Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, all age 9, and staff members Cynthia Peak, 61, Katherine Koonce, 60, and Mike Hill, 61.
Dr. Koonce was the Head of School for nearly seven years, according to her profile.
Investigators have said that Peak was a substitute teacher and Hill was a custodian.
"I was literally moved to tears to see this as the kids were being ushered out of the building," Drake said.
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"It could have been far worse," he continued.
"My heart and prayers go out to the families of the six people who were tragically injured."
A Metro Nashville police officer suffered a non-life-threatening hand injury in the incident.
Police were seen executing a search warrant at Hale's home in the Belmont area, where they found a sawed-off shotgun, second shotgun, and other evidence.
Chief Drake said investigators recovered maps with points of entry, drawings of the school, and surveillance footage as part of the investigation.
"We have a manifesto... and a map of how all of this was going to play out," he said.
Investigators believe the shooting was planned but they have not shared a reasoning or motive yet.
Police released video of the incident on Monday night that showed Hale stalking the school building after blasting through two glass doors.
The Covenant School, founded in 2001, is a private Christian academy housed at a Presbyterian church, with an enrollment of about 209 students in preschool through sixth grade.
The school has about 40 to 50 staff members, officials said.
President Joe Biden called the shooting "heartbreaking and a family's worst nightmare."
"It's sick, you know, we're still gathering the fact of what happened and why. And we do know that as of now, there were a number of people that did not make it, including children," Biden said while speaking at Small Business Administration’s Women’s Business Summit.
"It's ripping our communities apart, ripping the soul of this nation."
Biden called on Congress to pass an assault weapons ban, saying we "need to do more to protect our schools.
“It's about time we began to make some more progress," he said.
