A 13-year-old boy in Washington state who admired school shooters, had access to more than 20 firearms, and frequently posted online about his desire to commit a mass killing was arrested over the weekend, according to local police.
Pierce County Sheriff's reports say deputies arrested the teen at his Parkland-area home around 1 a.m. Saturday after investigators received a tip from a National Sheriffs' Association consultant about his social media posts, which showed him brandishing guns and describing his desire to kill others.
"This case had all the hallmarks of a potential mass shooting, but we were able to stop it before it happened," sheriff's spokesperson Carly Cappetto said Monday. She added that while the teen's intended target is still unknown, deputies successfully prevented a tragedy.
"Several pieces of evidence from the suspect's bedroom indicated he was obsessed with past school shooters and imitated similar behaviors with photos and inscriptions throughout his room," she said. "It appeared the suspect had everything ready to go to commit a mass shooting-type of incident."
Prosecutors charged the teen with three counts of second-degree unlawful firearm possession, along with one count each of attempted threat to bomb or damage property and unlawful possession of fireworks.
"The combination of the posts showed a user (with) multiple photographs of himself holding various firearms and dressed in the attire of past school shooters," police wrote. "These posts dated back to June 2025 and displayed a fascination of recent school shootings/mass casualty attacks across the country."
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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