A Texas mom was arrested and charged this week after allegedly buying live ammunition and tactical gear for her son’s planned shooting at his middle school.
Officials said the attack would have targeted Jeremiah Rhodes Middle School in San Antonio.
Ashley Pardo, 33, knew of her son’s “fascination with past mass shooters” and “expressed to the school her support” of the boy’s violent expressions and drawings, according to My San Antonio.
The school informed Pardo in January her son had drawn a map of the school with the phrase “suicide route,” along with an illustration of a rifle next to the name of the school.
In April, the unidentified boy was suspended after using a school-issued computer to research the 2019 Christchurch, New Zealand mosque shooting that left 51 people dead.
On Monday, the boy’s grandmother reportedly found him “hitting a live bullet with a hammer.” When she asked where he got the bullet, he allegedly said his mom had given it to him.
She called police after searching his room, where she said she found magazines with live ammo, an explosive device with a potential target’s name written on it, references to white supremacy and a list of other mass shootings.
The grandmother told police Pardo had taken her son to a surplus store to buy a tactical vest, helmet and related clothing.
Pardo said she had bought the boy the items as a reward for babysitting younger siblings and that she was not concerned with his behavior.
Both Pardo and her son were arrested on Monday. School officials said the boy is being charged with terrorism, while Pardo has been charged with aiding in commission of terrorism.
“Please know we take all potential threats seriously and act immediately to protect everyone in our care,” school principal Felismina Martinez said in a letter to parents. “We will always remain vigilant to ensure our learning and working environment is safe and secure.”
