A student at Ontario Christian High School was charged on Feb. 14 with several counts of attempted murder after allegedly plotting a shooting at the school.
Mr. Villasenor was arrested Feb. 10 at his home in Eastvale, Calif., after police were notified of the shooting plot by school officials, who reached out after one of Mr. Villasenor’s classmates told them of concerns.
Authorities found a stash of weapons and ammunition at Mr. Villasenor’s home, including seven rifles, two revolvers, one handgun, one shotgun, and over a thousand rounds of ammunition.
However, police said the weapons belonged to Mr. Villasenor’s parents, who had them locked up, and it’s unclear whether the student had access to them.
In a Feb. 14 press conference, Police Chief Mike Lorenz said Mr. Villasenor struggled in his personal relationships at the school.
He also said authorities believed Mr. Villasenor planned to target five students specifically, four of them girls.
Authorities also believed the student was “obsessed” with school shootings and planned for the mayhem to take place around the April anniversary of the 1999 Columbine High School shooting.
The police chief commended the unidentified student who raised the alarm about Mr. Villasenor as a “hero.”
“That student saved lives, spared families from losing their children and a community from being devastated from a senseless act of violence,” Mr. Lorenz said.
Ontario Christian High School Principal Ben Dykhouse agreed, praising the student’s bravery at the press conference.
“We’re so grateful to a student who was brave enough to say something when they saw something that was off,” Mr. Dykhouse said.
