A teenager in Tennessee helped avert a potentially deadly California shooting at a school by reporting alarming chatroom messages he encountered during an online game.
Brave teenager thwarts California shooting
Authorities in Tehama County, California, say two teenage boys, aged 14 and 15, were developing a plan to open fire at Cottonwood’s Evergreen Institute of Excellence.
According to Sheriff Dave Kain, the pair had laid out intentions to murder one of their parents and then launch a mass shooting at the middle school, with a goal of killing up to 100 innocent children and adults.
“These were serious,” Kain said during a news briefing on Tuesday. “It would have changed our community as a whole.”
The teenagers allegedly crafted a written manifesto and took photos dressed similarly to the shooters in the 1999 Columbine massacre.
They also reportedly discussed their violent plans through a video game’s chat function.
On May 9, a young gamer from Tennessee noticed the disturbing messages and took immediate action.
He contacted the Tehama County Sheriff’s Office, relaying the content of the chat and the gaming username of one of the suspects.
“This young man had the courage and heroic instincts to call our agency and notify us in order to mitigate any possible threat to our citizens and, possibly, our young people,” said Kain. “Our investigators took that tip seriously since the beginning.”
Teens plot California shooting online
With the help of the teen’s report, authorities examined the chat transcripts and accompanying photos. School officials were able to identify the two suspects based on those images.
Searches of the boys’ homes yielded firearms and devices that investigators believe were constructed as makeshift explosives. The sheriff indicated that these items were intended to be used in the planned California shooting.
According to officials, the attack was scheduled for May 9 but was called off after one of the boys decided not to proceed.
Investigators have not pinpointed a definitive motive. However, Kain noted that one of the suspects mentioned being bullied.
Both teens now face charges including conspiracy to commit a felony, making criminal threats, and the manufacture and possession of destructive devices.
Officials are working with prosecutors to determine whether to add a count of conspiracy to commit mass murder.
The teens appeared in juvenile court last week and were denied bail, the district attorney’s office confirmed.
Though law enforcement has stated that the threat appears limited to these two teenagers, security measures at the school are being reviewed.
Texas mother arrested for enabling son’s plans for mass shooting
In an unrelated case in Texas, a mother is facing serious charges after allegedly supporting her son’s intentions to carry out an attack at a local school.
Ashley Pardo, 33, is accused of helping her son acquire ammunition and tactical gear, despite being aware of his plan to commit what authorities described as “mass targeted violence” at Rhodes Middle School.
On May 12, the boy showed up at the school dressed in camouflage clothing, a face covering, and tactical pants, according to an affidavit. He soon left the campus, but the events of that day triggered immediate concern.
Earlier that morning, the boy’s grandmother discovered him tampering with a bullet.
When she asked about it, he allegedly told her that his mother had given him the live round and had recently taken him shopping for tactical supplies in return for babysitting his siblings.
She also reported that the boy claimed he would become “famous” before leaving with his mother to go to school.
Concerned by what she heard and found, the grandmother searched his room and located disturbing items including magazines filled with live ammunition, an improvised explosive created from a mortar-style firework, and a note referencing known mass shooters and the number of victims in each incident.
Authorities allege that Pardo had previously voiced support for her son’s violent ideas and drawings to school personnel and claimed she was not worried about his conduct.
That same afternoon, Pardo was arrested by San Antonio police and charged with aiding in the commission of terrorism.
The affidavit outlines a troubling pattern of behavior. In January, school staff found drawings made by the boy that included a labeled “suicide route” on school grounds.
During a follow-up meeting, he allegedly discussed his obsession with mass shooters and their manifestos.
In April, school officials suspended him after he reportedly accessed information about the 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings using a school-issued computer.
Later that day, the boy attempted suicide with a razor, suffering extensive injuries that required over 100 stitches.
After this incident, the student was transferred to a different school. However, he came back to Rhodes Middle School on May 8.
According to court records, Pardo had repeatedly been made aware of her son’s threats by police, school officials, and Child Protective Services. The affidavit suggests she downplayed these warnings.
Following her arrest, Pardo was released after posting a $75,000 bond. She is currently under house arrest, equipped with a GPS monitor, and is due back in court on July 17.
Her son was also taken into custody. At a Thursday news conference, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus stated that the teen was apprehended after fleeing from school.
He is facing terrorism-related charges and is being held at a juvenile detention facility.
