About 48 hours after the mass shooting at the BORG Dreierschützengasse in Graz, police and the public prosecutor’s office released new, confirmed details on Thursday. Landespolizeidirektor Gerald Ortner said the 21-year-old attacker entered the school’s main entrance at 9:43 a.m. carrying a backpack with his legally owned firearms and ammunition. He went to a third-floor restroom, “professionally” armed himself with a rifle and a sawed-off double-barrel shotgun, and began his seven-minute killing spree.

At that time, 350 to 400 students were in the building, Michael Lohnegger, head of the Styrian State Criminal Police, told reporters. The previously unknown former pupil randomly shot with his Glock 19 pistol and shotgun, killing ten people—nine students and one teacher who had taught him three years earlier—and then committed suicide in the restroom at 10:07 a.m. The first patrol, arriving at 10:06, heard no final shot.

Detailed Crime Scene Actions
Lohnegger described how the shooter first descended from the third to the second floor, firing indiscriminately in a fifth-grade classroom. He then returned to the third floor to a seventh-grade room within an eighth-grade space, where students had barricaded themselves. The attacker shot repeatedly at the locked door to gain entry and continued firing.

Investigators found a meticulous written timetable in his apartment during a court-approved search, outlining which floors to target and when. They also recovered a farewell letter and video for his family, but these offered no insight into a motive. A non-functional pipe bomb with all operational components was also seized.

Weapons Acquisition and Background
Lohnegger reported the suspect passed a psychological test for a gun-ownership permit in March. In mid-March he used rented weapons at a local shooting club; in early April he legally bought a shotgun, and in late May purchased the Glock. He received his gun permit in mid-May. A close friend described him as introverted, withdrawn from real life but active in online shooter communities—investigators are now tracing any online contacts.

Although he had ample ammunition and could have continued, the attacker ended his life, leaving authorities to focus on whether any accomplices or prior warning signs exist. A 16-member “Luctus” investigation team (“grief” in Latin) is reconstructing events, gathering ballistic and digital evidence, and interviewing hundreds of witnesses—students, staff, family, and onlookers.

Medical and Crisis Response
Twelve victims were treated across University Hospital Graz, LKH Graz II/West, and the Unfallkrankenhaus (UKH), with two in critical condition and others severely wounded. The UKH triggered a mass-casualty alert, recalling 10 doctors and 16 nurses from leave. The Red Cross deployed over 160 personnel, providing psychological support to more than 200 children and 300 relatives at Helmut-List-Halle—still open as a crisis center.

School and Community Reaction
Lohnegger praised the school’s staff for promptly locking and barricading classrooms and evacuating students, saying professional procedures saved lives. Chancellor Christian Stocker called it a “dark day” and declared three days of national mourning, including a minute’s silence at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, while Styria’s governor canceled all public events. Memorial services were held at Graz Cathedral, and hundreds gathered for a candlelight vigil at the main square.