Nashville police release bodycam footage of OIS with mass murder suspect – Law Officer

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Metro Nashville Police Department released bodycam footage of officers who responded to the deadly mass shooting at Covenant School on Monday. Three children and three adults were slain before officers reached and neutralized the shooter, identified as transgender 28-year-old Audrey Elizabeth Hale.

Chief John Drake identified two police personnel who fatally shot the mass murderer as Officer Rex Englebert and Officer Michael Collazo. Officer Englebert has been with MNPD for four years. Officer Collazo is a nine-year law enforcement veteran. They were part of a team that tactically moved toward the suspect and ended the threat, Law Officer reported.

MNPD Officers Rex Engelbert, a 4-year veteran, and Michael Collazo, a 9-year veteran, were part of a team of first responders to the Covenant campus Mon morning. They fired on the active shooter, who was killed. This is their body camera footage. https://t.co/17qsZM6bNp pic.twitter.com/g4b0nMTFRD

— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) March 28, 2023

The slain children were identified by police as Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs and William Kinney, all aged 9. The adults were Cynthia Peak, a 61-year-old substitute teacher; Mike Hill, a 61-year-old custodian; and 60-year-old head of the school Katherine Koonce.

Engelbert’s bodycam shows him arriving at the school at 10:27 a.m., about 14 minutes after the calls of an active shooter on the school’s campus, Action News Jax reported. 

After arriving on scene and grabbing his rifle, Engelbert is informed by a staff member that students are inside and locked down but that two were missing.

“I need three, let’s go!” Engelbert yells to fellow officers before entering the school, Action News Jax reported.

Within minutes, officers moved to the second floor, where gunfire can be heard. They then encounter and fire on Hale, who was fatally wounded.

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