Texas elementary shooting: New details reveal gunman Salvador Ramos entered school without confrontation

Scenes outside Texas Robb Elementary School (Image via Getty)

Salvador Ramos, the 18-year-old gunman who killed 19 children and two teachers at a Texas elementary school, walked into the building without much trouble, authorities said on Thursday.

This new update was contrary to what the information officials released earlier. As per Victor Escalon, the South Texas regional director for the state Department of Public Safety, the gunman wasn't confronted by a school police officer before he entered the school.

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No armed police officer was present on campus when Salvador Ramos entered the school: Victor Escalon

On May 24, Ramos walked into the west side of the school at 11.40 am and started firing. Four minutes later, the local and school police followed him inside, Victor Escalon said.

Upon entering the building, Salvador Ramos walked 20 to 30 feet ahead and took a right to walk another 20 feet before entering a classroom on the left.

Speaking about the way the officials approached the situation, Escalon was quoted as saying:

"Officers are there, the initial officers, they receive gunfire. They don’t make entry initially because of the gunfire they’re receiving. But we have officers calling for additional resources, everyone that's in the area."

Texas police seen outside Robb Elementary School (Image via Getty)

He further said:

"During this time that they're making those calls to bring in help to solve this problem and stop it immediately, they're also evacuating personnel, when I say students and teachers. There's a lot going on."

Texas police officials also made a statement saying that no armed school officer was present on campus when the shooting started.

Escalon then said:

"So from the grandmother’s house to the school... he was not confronted by anybody. We got a crash and a man with a gun, and then you have responding officers. That's what it is, if that's 12 minutes. At the end of the day, our job is to report the facts and have those answers. We’re not there yet."

He then stated that Salvador Ramos may have entered through an unlocked door.

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Law enforcement couldn't enter the classroom for an hour

Texas official Escalon did not provide much clarity to the media about when the shootings began. However, he made it seem as though it appeared after Salvador Ramos entered the school.

"The majority of the gunfire was in the beginning. During the negotiations, there wasn’t much gunfire other than trying to keep the officers at bay."

Escalon could not explain how nothing was done to stop Salvador Ramos. This is in reference to the 12 minutes between the car crashing into a ditch near the school and the time taken to enter it. He even declined to answer when the media asked whether the officers failed to act in a timely manner.

Meanwhile, a video from outside the school showed distressed parents and residents reacting to news of the shooting.

A witness was heard saying:

"They’re all in there. The cops aren’t doing sh*t except standing outside. You know they’re little kids, right? Little kids, they don’t know how to defend themselves."

It was not clear when the video was recorded or whether officers were already inside the building at the time.

Steven McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, speaking at a news conference on May 25 stated that the shooter was at the school for up to an hour before law enforcement officers breached the classroom.

Even though officers from multiple units and agencies arrived, they could not enter the classroom. The door was finally opened because of the principal's master key, state and federal law enforcement officials said.

Salvador Ramos suffered 15 bullet wounds from shots fired by authorities, two senior law enforcement officials said.

For now, the motive for the massacre, the nation's second deadliest school shooting since Sandy Hook, is being investigated by authorities. Meanwhile, they have stated that Salvador Ramos did not have a criminal or mental health history.