Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel described Cruz 's online profiles and accounts as " very , very disturbing " . They contained pictures and posts of him with a variety of weapons , including long knives , a shotgun , a pistol , and a BB gun . Police said that he held " extremist " views ; social media accounts that were thought to be linked to him contained anti-black and anti-Muslim slurs . YouTube comments linked to him include " I wan na die Fighting sic killing shit ton sic of people " , threats against police officers and " antifa , " and intent to mimic the University of Texas tower shooting . In February 2017 , Cruz legally purchased an AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle from a Coral Springs gun store . At the time of the shooting , in Florida , persons 18 or older were able to buy rifles from federally licensed dealers . The age requirement has since been raised to 21 . Cruz passed a background check . A year later , he used this weapon to commit the mass shooting at his former school
University of Texas tower shooting
University of Texas tower shooting
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting