2 Florida middle school students arrested in alleged school shooting plot tried to recruit fellow students to participate

By Gregory Lemos and Melissa Alonso, CNN

The two middle-school students who were arrested after allegedly planning a shooting at their school in Lee County, Florida, attempted to recruit other students to join their plot, an arrest report in the case says.

“These conversations took place during classes, in the cafeteria, and through Zoom virtual meetings,” according to the report, regarding the alleged plot at Harns Marsh Middle School.

A 13-year-old boy and a 14-year-old boy were arrested and booked on September 11 for “attempts, solicitation, and conspiracy to conduct a homicide (Mass Shooting),” the arrest report says.

It says authorities interviewed three students who said the two teenage boys had been “talking about conducting a shooting at their school” for over a week.

Authorities say the two teenagers told fellow students that Columbine was their inspiration and they planned to shoot themselves after shooting other students.

The teens told classmates they planned to obtain weapons on the black market and showcased a map with surveillance cameras, a natural gas line and shooting locations marked, according to the arrest report. No weapons were found at the school.

Last week Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno told reporters during a news conference that search warrants executed at the students’ homes turned up “a gun and several knives,” among the evidence that Marceno called “disturbing,” CNN has previously reported.

The arrest report says that last week, the suspects “both approached each of the students and verbally asked them if they wanted to participate in the school shooting. All the students declined to take part.”

According to a sworn statement from an unnamed person included in the arrest report, the two teenagers planned to target “bullies” and identified the cafeteria as a shooting location, after they had created a diversion using gas.

According to Lee County Sheriff’s Office Public Affairs Captain Anita Iriarte, both suspects appeared in court Sunday and were taken to Southwest Regional Juvenile Detention Center, where they will remain for 21 days.

During this time they are not allowed to have contact with each other or the school. A judge from the 20th Judicial Circuit is expected to rule on next steps, according to Iriarte.

Their next court date is September 27, said Sara Miles, public information officer for the 20th Judicial Circuit.

CNN has not been able to determine if the two minors have obtained legal representation.

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