Teenagers plotted to attack their school on the 25th anniversary of the Columbine High School mass shooting, say authorities. The planned 2024 massacre allegedly would have involved gunfire and explosives.
“Hey [expletive] this is going to boom up in your faces,” co-defendant Zavier Lewis allegedly said, according to WBRE/WYOU. He is 15 years old, but he and Alyssa Kucharski, 15, are being charged as adults. Lackawanna County District Attorney Mark Powell said it was because of the seriousness of the claims against them. Two other teens are being charged as juveniles.
The attack was planned for April 20, 2024 at Dunmore High School in Dunmore, Pennsylvania. The teenagers allegedly named their event “Natural Born Killers.”
Cops said they learned about it after a mother found disturbing texts on her child’s phone, according to WNEP. The messages, dating back to May, allegedly showed the teenagers planning to attack other students, but also single out the principal, a school resource officer, and a teacher as targets.
“It’s a little bit disturbing to find out something like that was being plotted,” Principal Timothy Hopkins told The Morning Call. He said he did not know why they targeted him, except perhaps because he is the principal. He described Kucharski and Lewis as quiet kids and not troublemakers.
But trouble is what the teens allegedly planned. Video showed the 15-year-olds making explosives by taking gunpowder from fireworks, according to the criminal complaint obtained by The Morning Call.
“Say hello to the camera,” Lewis allegedly asked Kucharski.
“This is going to boom up in your face,” she allegedly answered.
Students allegedly said that Kucharski constructed Molotov cocktails and other explosives from gunpowder and CO2 cartridges, according to WBRE/WYOU. Another student allegedly said that she had 20 to 30 Molotovs under her home’s front porch. Kurcharski allegedly voiced plans to buy gas masks, bulletproof vests, and trench coasts.
“I think I’m gonna go with Klebold setup,” she allegedly wrote in a notebook about her plans. “A Tech-9 and a sawed off shotgun, but instead of a double barrel, I want one like Eric shot.”
Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold were the Columbine shooters.
“I don’t know why I did it,” Kucharsky allegedly told police. “I just did it because that was on my mind at the time.”
Lewis allegedly told cops that they stopped actively preparing after Kucharski learned about the investigation. He allegedly said he “felt better about it because he didn’t think he was going to be able to kill someone.”
Kuchariski’s attorney Corey Eagen and her mother declined to comment, according to The Morning Call. Lewis did not have an attorney present during his arraignment on Friday.
The Dunmore School District released a statement online saying they knew about the investigation and the allegations.
This is an important message from the Dunmore School District. Please view below. pic.twitter.com/1nAiWeTXNm
— Dunmore SD News (@dsd_news) September 24, 2021
“Please be advised that the Administration has been informed that the alleged perpetrators are in custody and we have been assured that there is no current danger to students and staff,” they wrote.
[Screenshot via WBRE/WYOU]
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