Photo shows suspect in active shooter simulation, not Georgia school Fact check

The claim: Photo shows Georgia school shooting suspect

A Sept. 4 Facebook post ( direct link , archive link ) shows a hooded figure carrying a long gun.

“This is the Apalachee High School Shooter, and he’s 14,” reads the start of the post.

Other versions of the claim spread widely on X, formerly Twitter .

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Our rating: False

The photo has been used in active shooter training materials since at least 2015.

Photo appeared in several places before Georgia shooting

Officials identified the suspect in the Sept. 4 school shooting that killed four people in Winder, Georgia , as 14-year-old Colt Gray, USA TODAY reported . Gray was a student at the school.

But the photo in the social media posts predates the attack by at least eight years.

The same frame can be seen in a 2015 news clip about Indiana State Police active shooter training, as well as in a training video the agency published the following year. It can also be seen on the agency’s resource page for its trainings on responding to an active shooter.

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