A survivor of Tuesday's mass killing in Uvalde, Texas, told a news outlet what the accused gunman said to officers who had responded to the school shooting.
Gemma Lopez, 10, told ABC News on Thursday that she heard Salvador Ramos, whom authorities identified as the suspect in the shooting at Robb Elementary School, say "leave me alone, please" in Spanish to law enforcement officers at the scene.
Authorities say Ramos, 18, was responsible for killing 19 children and two teachers during what was the deadliest school shooting since 2012's Sandy Hook shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, in which 26 people were killed. Ramos, who was reportedly killed by a U.S. Border Patrol agent, is believed to have bought two assault rifles last week for his 18th birthday.
Lopez told ABC News that she was in a classroom next to the room where Ramos allegedly began shooting.
She told the news outlet she heard five to six gunshots before a bullet flew by her and struck the wall. Lopez also described seeing smoke, which she said signaled to her that the situation was serious.
Lopez said she turned off the classroom lights and hid under tables, according to ABC News. She reportedly said she had learned to do this from training she's gone through at school since kindergarten.
Lopez also said she was best friends with Amerie Jo Garza, 10, who was one of the children killed in the shooting.
Garza's grandmother, Berlinda Irene Arreola, spoke with The Daily Beast after the girl's death. She said she had been informed about the final moments before Garza was fatally wounded.
"So the gunman went in and he told the children, 'You're going to die,'" Arreola told The Daily Beast. "And she [Garza] had her phone and she called 911. And instead of grabbing it and breaking it or taking it from her, he shot her. She was sitting right next to her best friend. Her best friend was covered in her blood."
The Daily Beast said Arreola wrote in a text message that Garza was shot while trying to alert authorities about the situation.
"My Grand Daughter was shot and killed for trying to call 911, she died a Hero trying to get help for her and her fellow classmates," Arreola wrote, according to the website.
Authorities have reported that Ramos shot his grandmother before he attacked the school. He had been staying with the grandmother, who is reportedly being treated in a hospital, following a troubled period of living with his mother.
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