Suspect charged with 17 murders after school shooting in Florida was orphaned teen with troubled past

An orphaned 19-year-old with a troubled past and an AR-15 rifle was charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder on Thursday morning after being questioned for hours by state and US federal authorities following the deadliest school shooting in the country in five years.

Fifteen wounded survivors were taken to hospital as bodies were recovered from inside and around Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.