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The archbishop of San Antonio, Gustavo Garcia-Siller, comforts families outside the Civic Center following a deadly school shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022. (AP) The archbishop of San Antonio, Gustavo Garcia-Siller, comforts families outside the Civic Center following a deadly school shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022. (AP)

The archbishop of San Antonio, Gustavo Garcia-Siller, comforts families outside the Civic Center following a deadly school shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, May 24, 2022. (AP)

Monique Curet
By Monique Curet May 25, 2022

Gunman in Texas school shooting was not an immigrant illegally in the country

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Salvador Ramos, who police said shot and killed 19 students and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas, was a U.S. citizen, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said. 

In the aftermath of a mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, social media posts falsely claimed that the gunman was an immigrant illegally in the U.S., and got his name wrong.

"Illegal Alien Salvatore Ramos, 18 years old, shot & killed 14 students & 1 teacher in Uvalde, Texas," said one May 24 post.

It was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)

Police identified the shooter as Salvador Ramos. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Ramos was a U.S. citizen. (Abbott’s comment came at the 13-minute mark in this video of a May 24 news conference.)

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Early reporting indicated that 14 students and one teacher died in the shooting, but those numbers were later updated to 19 students and two teachers. Ramos was shot and killed at the school by law enforcement.

We rate the claim that Ramos was illegally in the country False. 

 

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Gunman in Texas school shooting was not an immigrant illegally in the country

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