Law enforcement officials in Tampa, Florida, have taken a 17-year-old male into custody after discovering plans to carry out an attack on a local high school, Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor said Wednesday.
Police discovered explosive materials in Jared Cano’s home as well as a manifesto outlining a minute-by-minute plan detailing specific targets at Freedom High School, including two administrators. Cano allegedly hoped to kill about 30 students and exceed the level of violence associated with the 1999 school shootings in Columbine, Colorado, Castor said.
The attack — scheduled to take place at the start of the school year — would have been “a potentially catastrophic event,” she said.
Cano was expelled from Freedom High School more than a year ago due to “inappropriate behavior,” according to Lewis Brinson, the Hillsborough County assistant superintendent for administration.
Castor said police received a tip regarding Cano’s plans, though she declined to name the individual who provided the information.
Castor said there is no reason to believe that anyone else was involved in the plan and noted that no organizations were mentioned in the manifesto.
She stressed that Cano’s family has been cooperating with authorities and said there is no evidence the family was aware of the plan.
Castor said extra police will be on hand for the opening of Tampa public schools next week.
(Source: CNN)
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One Response
As a matter of public safety, this individual needs to be kept locked up for a very long time. Hopefully, there are legal grounds to do so. However, it may be difficult, considering that no attempt was (yet) made to commit this heinous crime, and a charge of conspiracy requires at least one other person to be involved in the plot.