Two 15-Year-Old Girls Arrested in Alleged Plot to Attack Corona High School

Students arriving at Corona High School on Wednesday said they were shocked to learn that two 15-year-old girls had been arrested over an alleged plan to carry out a shooting on the campus.

According to the FBI, the investigation started on Oct. 6, when the agency noticed social media chatter about a possible threat. Authorities arrested one of the girls, a student at Corona High School. Investigators later arrested a second 15-year-old, who attends Norco High School and who the FBI said was also involved in the alleged plot.

The FBI said the pair had researched school shootings online and talked about how they might carry out an attack and get weapons. No weapons were ever found.

Corona Police Lt. Robert Montanez shared more details about the case in an interview with ABC LA. He said a list containing the names of individuals existed, but that the campus itself was clearly the intended target. "I can't really speak to what was in these girls' minds," Montanez said. "But yes, there was a list with individuals' names on it, but their target was clearly the school campus."

Asked about a possible motive, Montanez again said he could not speak to what the girls were thinking. He noted, however, that there are some signs revenge may have played a role. "If that's the case, it's extraordinarily unfortunate that it's got to this point where these girls felt that this was their only avenue to deal with their problems," he said.

Parents voiced concern as details of the case came to light. "I think it's really scary. It's really scary that it's two teen girls," parent Jessica Rivera said.

Another parent, Adriana Garcia, reflected on how things have changed. "I don't know what's going on through kids' minds nowadays," she said. "Back when I was in high school, it wasn't really much like that."

Both suspects remain in custody. The two girls are facing charges of conspiracy to commit murder.