A gun violence restraining order states a 20-year-old Carlsbad man was texting with Samantha Rupnow to coordinate a mass shooting.
CARLSBAD, Calif. — The FBI has detained a 20-year-old Carlsbad man for plotting a mass shooting at a government building in conjunction with Madison, Wisconsin, school shooter Samantha Rupnow’s attack at the Abundant Life Christian School.
According to a gun violence restraining order obtained by CBS 8, FBI agents served Alexander Paffendorf after discovering Paffendorf was in contact with Rupnow and coordinating an attack at a government building.
Paffendorf, according to the restraining order, admitted facts to FBI agents in a subsequent interview.
“During an FBI interview, Paffendorf admitted to the FBI agents that he told Rupnow that he would arm himself with explosives and a gun and that he would target a government building,” reads the two-page restraining order from the Carlsbad Police Department.
The order said that FBI agents “saw the messages from Paffendorf to Rupnow.”
A San Diego Superior Court Judge approved the restraining order on Tuesday, December 17, at 8:51 p.m.
Not long after the judge signed the order, Paffendorf’s Carlsbad neighbors saw more than a dozen police cars enter the complex.
“They had their full guns out all over the street,” neighbor Alex Gallegos told CBS 8. “There were cop cars. I’d say about 15 cops here.”
Gallegos then saw police carrying out what he described as a “black gun box.”
“I saw them carrying out the big box,” Gallegos said. “I didn’t see them arrest anybody, but they gave high-fives as it came to an end.”
Gallegos added, “It sounds pretty wild and scary that this could happen so close to home.”
Paffendorf’s gun violence protective order comes two days after 15-year-old Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow entered the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, and opened fire, killing one student and a teacher before turning the gun on herself. Rupnow also shot five other students and one teacher.
CBS 8 contacted the Carlsbad Police and the FBI for comment. The FBI stated the Madison Police Department is handling the investigation. The article will be updated when more information is available.
CBS 8 will continue to follow the story for any updates.