HOUSTON (KIAH) — Two high school students have been arrested for planning what the FBI is calling a “mass casualty attack” at a Houston school.
Officials with the FBI Houston office said they received information Tuesday regarding a possible attack plotted by “two underage teenagers from the Houston area.” The “potentially credible” threats were first identified on social media, and targeted the Memorial High School in the Spring Branch Interdependent School District, the district’s police chief said in a message sent to the students’ families.
The teenagers’ plot reportedly involved the use of pipe bombs and guns, according to sources for NBC News and ABC News.
Officials said the two teenagers were arrested in connection with the alleged plot. One of the teens was a student in the district, while another was identified as a student at a Montgomery County school, about 48 miles north of Houston. The Montgomery County student is in custody on unrelated charges, according to the Montgomery County Sherriff’s Office.
“Evidence suggests their intent was to carry out acts of violence at a school in Spring Branch ISD,” a news release from the sheriff’s office reads.
The FBI said its Threat Mitigation Team worked with the Houston police, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, and the school district’s police force to “identify and arrest” the suspects.
“We received troubling information, conducted a rapid investigation, shared our findings with trusted law enforcement partners, and ultimately saved lives,” the FBI’s Houston Office wrote.
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