Manhunt for Armed Woman 'Infatuated with Columbine' Closes Dozens of Schools, Suspect Dead
Many schools closed in the Denver area on Wednesday as law enforcement conducted a “massive manhunt” to locate a young Florida woman “infatuated” with the 1999 Columbine High School Shooting.
The woman, 18-year-old Sol Pais of Florida, was tracked down to Echo Lake Lodge near the base of Mount Evans, a wilderness area about 60 miles west of Denver. She is reportedly dead, according to CBS News.
The circumstances of her death are not clear, but numerous news accounts reported it was self-inflicted.
The high school student traveled from Miami to Colorado, where she purchased a pump action shotgun, according to the CBS Denver affiliate KCNC-TV.
Authorities described her as “armed and extremely dangerous.”
Saturday will mark the 20th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting that left 13 dead, including 12 students and a teacher.
The two gunmen, who were Columbine students, also died.
JUST IN: Sol Pais, woman suspected of making threats towards Denver-area schools, is dead, CBS News has confirmed https://t.co/uk7YN0Mq4c pic.twitter.com/2imqWFa8jq
— CBS News (@CBSNews) April 17, 2019
School districts in Jefferson County, where Columbine is located, and throughout the Denver-metro area heeded the threat and closed their facilities.
In collaboration with other Denver-metro area school districts, all Jeffco Public Schools will be closed on Wednesday, April 17 due to the ongoing safety concern. All facilities and programs are closed for the day – no employees are to report.
— Jeffco Public Schools (@JeffcoSchoolsCo) April 17, 2019
The move came after several schools conducted lockouts on Tuesday after authorities warned of Pais’ believed presence in the Denver metro area, The Denver Post reported.
The FBI’s Denver office confirmed on Wednesday morning it was investigating around the base of Mount Evans.
We can confirm there is investigative activity around the base of Mt. Evans. The investigation is active and ongoing. More information will follow soon. #FindSol
— FBI Denver (@FBIDenver) April 17, 2019
The office later tweeted, “UPDATE: THERE IS NO LONGER A THREAT TO THE COMMUNITY. More information to follow shortly. #FindSol.”
UPDATE: THERE IS NO LONGER A THREAT TO THE COMMUNITY. More information to follow shortly. #FindSol
— FBI Denver (@FBIDenver) April 17, 2019
The Miami Herald reported that Pais was a senior at Miami Beach High School.
A man who answered the door at Pais’ Surfside home, who identified himself as her father, said the family had lost contact with her.
“I think maybe she’s got a mental problem,” he told the paper.
Her parents reported her missing on Monday night.
According to the Herald, “Surfside officers turned the case over to Miami Beach police detectives, who found her ‘deeply disturbed’ online postings and immediately notified the FBI, according to a law-enforcement source.”
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