TORREÓN, COAHUILA, MEXICO – JANUARY 10, 2020 The “Colegio Cervantes shooting” is one of the worst school shootings in history. Not for the number of victims, but mostly because of the age of the attacker. It was only 11-year-old José Ángel Ramos Betts.

: José during his 6th birthday party

: Young José

He arrived at the school with two guns he stole from his grandfather. During class, he went to the toilet to change his clothes. He was wearing a T-shirt that said “Natural Selecrion”, referring to the Columbine school shooting and to Eric Harris. Even the rest of his clothes bore a striking resemblance to Harris on the day of the massacre.

When English teacher María Assaf Medina went looking for him, she met him in the hallway with the guns. He opened fire on the physics teacher and five classmates – wounding all of them. He then shot María, who died on the spot. While other teachers heard the shooting and evacuated the students, the young shooter put a gun to his head and committed suicide.

The boy came from a broken home. His mother had died and his father was in prison in El Paso, Texas, for drug trafficking. His 58-year-old grandfather, José Ángel Ramos Saucedo, also had a criminal record for drug trafficking. He was later found to still be involved in the trade. He had millions of dollars in bank transfers. He was arrested and charged with money laundering, tax evasion and leaving weapons in a place accessible to a child.

If you’re thinking about suicide, please stop and recognize that your pain is not permanent, but this step would be. It may feel like there’s no other way, but there is hope, even if it’s hard to see right now. Your feelings are temporary, and with help, they can pass.

Talking about what you're going through might feel difficult, but it’s the first step toward healing. Don’t turn away from the people who want to support you. Life can offer more than what you're feeling right now, and the pain doesn't have to last forever. You deserve help, and it’s available.

If you need immediate help, please contact a helpline.

⚠️

This post has been tagged as a "child warning" and may contain minors. It has been published because it is informative or educational, may be relevant to the research of invesigative journalists, or could be misused as fake news in hybrid warfare.

It is strictly forbidden to sexualize a minor in any way in the comments below the post. It is also forbidden to upload uncensored images in comments. Such behavior will result in a perpetual BAN or providing your information to the police.

If you notice such behaviour, please report it by using the red flag icon.