2 teen girls in custody for planned mass casualty attack at Texas high school
According to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, the agency is actively investigating a criminal case involving online threats made by the suspects enrolled in the Spring Branch Independent School District (ISD) in Houston.
"Evidence suggests their intent was to carry out acts of violence at a school in (the district),"sheriff's office Lt. Scott Spencer released in a statement to USA TODAY.
Officials told USA TODAY authorities learned about the threat Tuesday and quickly took the teens, ages 15 and 16, into custody. Citing an open investigation, neither the sheriff's office nor the FBI would say where the teens were arrested or release details about the planned attack.
USA TODAY has reached out to the school district.
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16-year-old student in custody reportedly attends Memorial High School
According to officials, the 15-year-old attends Willis High School and was in custody Wednesday on unrelated charges. Law enforcement would not disclose the charges that teen faces.
The second juvenile, Spencer said, was in custody in Harris County on Wednesday. He would not disclose what charge that student faced.
But Spring Branch ISD Police Chief Larry Baimbridge told ABC News, the student is 16, attends Memorial High School and was being held on a charge of making a terroristic threat.
USA TODAY has reached out to Baimbridge.
Because the investigation is in the early stages, and law enforcement continued to review evidence in the case, the sheriff's office said it would" provide updates as more information becomes available."
'A rapid investigation'
"This type of situation is exactly why the FBI exists," FBI Houston Public Affairs Officer Connor Hagan told USA TODAY Thursday morning. "We were able to take troubling information we received, conduct a rapid investigation, turn our results over to trusted local law enforcement partners, and ultimately save lives of innocent students.
Because the suspects are juveniles, Hagan said, his office was limited by FBI and DOJ policies in releasing more details.
"This planned attack wouldn't have been stopped without exceptionally close partnerships between FBI Houston, Spring Branch ISD Police Department, Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, and Houston Police Department. We have officers from dozens of local agencies embedded with our agents working these types of threats everyday on our Threat Mitigation Team and other task forces. FBI agents and task force officers, who are federally deputized, are absolutely essential to keeping our communities safe."
'The utmost urgency'
According to a news release from the sheriff's office, the safety and security of schools as well as the community remains its "highest priority."
"We are treating this matter with the utmost urgency," the release reads. "Threats of violence in our schools will not be tolerated."
Additional security measures have been implemented, and the sheriff's office continues to work closely with school officials and law enforcement partners "to ensure a safe environment," Spencer said.
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.
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