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German Gunman 'Totally Normal Teen'

Classmates say school shooter was shy but never seemed strange

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Mar 14, 2009 2:40 AM CDT

(Newser) – The 17-year-old who calmly gunned down his former classmates and teachers in Germany this week before taking his own life seemed like a normal teenager, Der Spiegel reports. Tim Kretschmer was inconspicuous and shy, schoolmates say, but he wasn't a loner and wasn't considered strange. Police say they have searched in vain for a farewell letter explaining the shooting spree that killed 15.

"Tim was never aggressive or conspicuous," said one former classmate. "He was simply normal—just like everyone else. I felt like I had been struck by lightning when I heard that he did it. For years I saw him every day, every day! Who would have thought that he had a ticking time bomb inside him?"

[Images (6)]

[Quotes (1)]

A big black cross is seen on a house in Winnenden, southern Germany, Friday, March 13, 2009, two days after a gunman killed nine pupils and three teachers in a nearby school. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

People place candles for the victims of the school attack in Stuttgart, Germany, Friday, March 13, 2009. (AP Photo/Daniel Maurer)

Tim Kretschmer is seen on July 6, 2006. Kretschmer, 17, opened fire Wednesday on teachers and pupils at his former school, killing 15 and leaving many more injured. (Getty Images)

An undated photo of Tim Kretschmer, who opened fire at the Albertville school in Winnenden, Germany, on Wednesday,March 11, 2009 (AP Photo)

Members of the media record the forensic marks where Tim Kretschmer died in Wendlingen, Germany, Thursday, March 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Daniel Maurer)

A police officer stands in front of the Albertville school in Winnenden, Germany, Thursday, March 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Thomas Kienzle)

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According to our investigations thus far he was apparently a totally normal teenager. - a police spokesman

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German Gunman 'Totally Normal Teen'