MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. — Montgomery County leaders expressed gratitude to authorities for working together to thwart a potentially "catastrophic" school shooting. County leaders and law enforcement discussed the investigation during a press conference Friday.
An 18-year-old high school student was arrested earlier this week for threatening to commit a school shooting. Alex Ye was arrested Thursday following a joint investigation by the Montgomery County Police Department and the FBI.
The investigation began when FBI agents were notified by MCPD about a 129-page "manifesto" written by Ye. In the document, Ye writes about committing a school shooting, and strategizes about how to do it. He also contemplates targeting an elementary school and says he wants to be famous, according to police.
Charging documents indicate the manifesto was a book that was shared with someone Ye had befriended while receiving treatment for homicidal and suicidal thoughts last year. Ye had previously threatened to "shoot up a school" in 2022, as well, according to the documents.
According to the documents, the person who received the book noted that the main character was Asian and transgender, who had previously been hospitalized for psychiatric care. All of these things mirrored Ye's real life. The person ended up calling police and said they were worried that a school shooting was imminent.
On Friday, Montgomery County Police Chief Marcus Jones and others all thanked that witness for coming forward.
"This situation highlights the critical importance of vigilance and community involvement," Jones said. "Thanks to swift action and cooperation a potentially catastrophic event was prevented."
Other leaders, like County Executive Marc Elrich, stressed the importance of mental health resources for those in need.
"I hope one of the things that comes out of this is a look back at how early did we know that he was expressing homicidal and suicidal ideation, and when did we begin intervening," Elrich said. "He clearly had mental health issues and I think it would be worth our while to figure out when could we have known and when could we have possibly intervened."
Montgomery County Council President Andrew Friedson echoed Elrich's sentiment, pointing out that Saturday is the 25th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting.
"I am just deeply grateful that because of that because of a brave witness who saw something and said something, because of impressive coordination … a similar fate that happened 25 years ago didn’t happen at Wootton High School in Rockville, Maryland," he said.
"Today is a sober day, but it would have been a catastrophic day if not for the heroic work of so many people who were part of avoiding such a terrible tragedy from happening," Friedson said.
State's attorney John McCarthy said Ye was arrested and charged as an adult with a misdemeanor of threat of mass violence. That charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. McCarthy said they are reviewing evidence leading up to his arrest and more charges are possible.
Ye appeared before a judge Friday for a bond hearing. The judge denied him bond, citing an apparent "escalation" in planning despite hospitalizations.
Judge Patricia Mitchell said the only safe place for Ye is in jail.
Ye's parents were in court Friday. They left the courtroom without speaking. Their attorney said Ye's parents are both Ph.D statisticians with federal security clearance who could be trusted to supervise Ye at home.
Mitchell disagreed and opted for jail.
A trial is set for June.
RELATED: Rockville student arrested for threatening to shoot up elementary school in 129-page manifesto
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