No explosives found, but police seize items from Sobrato
students’ homes
Morgan Hill – Two male students who allegedly planned to plant bombs at Sobrato High School in a Columbine-like attack are headed to court in San Jose this morning, according to one of the suspect’s mother.
She would not elaborate on charges her son or his friend could face in court at the advice of her attorney. The 14- and 15-year-old Sobrato freshmen spent the weekend in Juvenile Hall after police arrested them Thursday on suspicion of conspiracy for allegedly plotting – for at least a month – to plant the bombs at the school. It is unclear what charges the two face and multiple calls to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office were not returned Monday. Morgan Hill Police Cmdr. Terrie Booten said the boys could only be held for 48 hours without being charged. The suspects mother confirmed her son had not been released Monday night.
The Dispatch is not releasing the names of the students because they are minors.
Sobrato administrators learned of a possible bomb threat early Thursday morning and called Morgan Hill Police. When officers arrived on campus, they decided to take the two boys named as suspects from class and interview them in the office. While on the way to the class of the first boy, a fire alarm went off in an unrelated incident when a construction worker broke a ceiling sprinkler head.
Students were evacuated from the building and waited outside for 45 minutes while officers searched the campus. No explosives were found at the school, but police did seize items from each of the boys’ homes. Though he would not detail what the evidence was, MHPD Cmdr. Joe Sampson said the items taken were “not bombs or firearms.”
Booten said Monday there was no specific date set for the alleged attack.
Other Sobrato students said the alleged bomb plot has caused a stir on campus before winter break begins Thursday, but few are scared of violence erupting on school grounds.
“For me, it was almost like a routine,” freshman Mary Boyd said Monday. “Because we always have those drills, we’re always practicing what to do. So it seemed like another drill.”
But Boyd said she was surprised when she found out who was involved and what they had allegedly planned.
“Both of those boys are in my third period class, and they seemed like average boys, pretty normal,” she said. “One of them was really nice, the other was quiet, not much of a talker.”
Cynthia Burnham said she isn’t worried about sending her son to class this week.
“I think they handled it well,” she said. “It was probably lucky that the fire alarm went off then, so everyone was outside.”
Students said rumors are flying around the campus about whether the two teens will return to school.
Rick and Debra Masoni, whose daughter attends the school, said they were concerned by the rumors, as well as the incident.
“What bothers me is that if what they are saying is true, those kids could have blown up my daughter, could have killed any of those kids,” Debra Masoni said. “It could have been any of our children. I would worry if they were coming back to the school. You can’t protect your children all the time, you have to send them to school, but you worry.”
The incident, which received considerable attention by other Bay Area media outlets over the weekend, is being taken very serious by local police.
“Anytime you have an incident on campus, and certainly with the threat of mass destruction, that’s something we take extremely seriously,” Booten said. “We of course are concerned with the safety of the children in an educational environment. As law enforcement officers, we look at these situations very seriously. We don’t want the Columbine-thing to happen to us.”
The involvement of the community was valuable in this case, according to Booten.
“Anytime anybody suspects a crime might happen or has information, we certainly encourage them to notify their parents, another adult, a school administrator or the police,” she said. “The ones that come forward, they are the heroes in our eyes. We can’t be everywhere, can’t know everything. That is where the community, people getting involved, comes in. And we have laws that protect those that get involved. If you hear something or see something that doesn’t seem right, notify someone.”
