Oregon school shooter was 16-year-old whose mother purchased the gun he used, sources say

Officials said the gunman shot through a locked door to gain entry into the school around 1 p.m. local time and fired as many as 15 rounds in total, using three types of ammunition.

The shooter had 44 more rounds of ammunition with him, police said.

Two senior law enforcement officials told NBC News that the teen’s mother purchased the long gun he used around his birthday in August.

The mother has been cooperative with law enforcement, according to other law enforcement officials familiar with the investigation.

Police said they executed a search warrant at the shooter’s house Friday and collected evidence.

The shooter was an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, a federally recognized sovereign Indian tribe, tribe CEO Kurtis Barker confirmed Saturday.

“The Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians is heartbroken by the tragic loss of life at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend,” Barker said. “We extend our deepest condolences to the families who lost loved ones and hold in our thoughts those who were injured, the students and staff who experienced this unimaginable tragedy, and the entire Bend community as they grieve.”

The shooter’s mother, identified through public records as Shauntai Nickerson, spoke to NBC affiliate KTVZ of Bend in 2020 about her son’s enrollment in a special education program.

In the news package, which aired on Sept. 29 of that year, Nickerson says her son Griffin, then 10, struggled to learn from home and she welcomed his return to the classroom amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

“I think that it’ll be great for Griffin, because, you know, I am not certified in teaching, you know, a special needs student,” Nickerson said in the news package. “And so I think that it’ll be great for my son to get back in there and get the help that he needs with the skilled teachers that he needs to get it from.”

Attempts to reach Nickerson for comment were not successful.

Next door neighbor Drue Bernstein, 31, said he sometimes saw John and his mother passing and occasionally saw the teenager with friends. Nothing he observed struck him as particularly troubling, he said, though their encounters were brief.

Police and federal investigators have not publicly identified a motive.

“To the people who showed courage in the face of such violence and intervened to prevent this tragedy from being any worse, we owe you a debt of gratitude,” Krantz said. “And to the school district personnel who follow protocol with lockdown, evacuation, and reunification to keep your students and staff as safe as possible. Thank you for your help.”

CORRECTION (Oct. 16, 2026, 8:20 p.m. ET): An earlier version of this article identified the shooter as John. J. Griffin II, based on information NBC News received from three senior law enforcement officials. The Bend, Oregon, police chief said the shooter’s name is Griffin J. John II.

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