The two female suspects, aged 15 and 16, were apprehended on Tuesday following a joint operation by FBI Houston, the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, and the Spring Branch ISD Police Department, local media reported. They were taken into custody within 30 minutes of the FBI receiving a tip about the plot.
According to a news release from the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, the case involved "online threats made by two students" that indicated their intention was to commit extreme acts of violence in the Spring Branch Independent School District. The identities of the two young suspects have not yet been revealed.
One suspect, a 16-year-old girl from Memorial High School, has been charged with making a terroristic threat, a third-degree felony. She has been booked into a detention center in Harris County and was attending an alternative school in the district at the time of her arrest, authorities said.
The second suspect, a 15-year-old girl from Willis High School, was taken into custody on unrelated charges. She is being held in custody of the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. Click 2 Houston reported that additional details about this suspect are expected to surface.
The FBI Houston Office announced the apprehensions in an X post on Wednesday, saying that its Threat Mitigation Team immediately responded to assist local authorities with identifying and arresting the suspects.
Montgomery County Sheriff's Office said that there is no longer a present threat and additional security measures have been implemented at the school.
"The safety and security of our schools and community remain our highest priority," the sheriff's office said in a statement. "We understand the concerns this situation may cause for students, parents, and faculty, and we are taking every necessary precaution. Additional security measures have been implemented, and we continue to work closely with school officials and our law enforcement partners to ensure a safe environment."
"We encourage the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to law enforcement," the statement continued. "If you see something, say something. This investigation is in the early stages, and we are reviewing all available evidence. We will provide updates as more information becomes available."
This marks the second planned school massacre thwarted by the FBI and law enforcement agencies within the past month. On February 11, an 18-year-old transgender teen with a strong affection for mass shooters was taken into custody on terrorism charges in Indiana for plotting to carry out a "Parkland Part 2," referring to the 2018 mass shooting at Parkland High School in Florida.
