Oregon HS Student Accused of Attempted Murder in Alleged Bomb Plot
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ABC News(BENTON COUNTY, Ore.) — A student at West Albany High School in Benton County, Ore. will be charged with attempted aggravated murder after authorities say he planned a bomb attack on his school, prosecutors said Saturday.
Benton County District Attorney John Haroldson says the suspect, 17-year-old Grant Acord, had amassed a stockpile of explosives with the intention of attacking his high school, including pipe bombs, home-made napalm and Molotov cocktails.
Documents found alongside the explosives in a secret compartment underneath the floor in Acord’s room indicate that he specifically modeled the planned attack after the 1999 Columbine massacre. The Columbine shooters, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, had planned to use explosives during their attack, but the bombs did not work properly.
Acord’s plot was uncovered thanks to a call to 911 that tipped off police before the attack could take place.
Haroldson says Acord will be charged as an adult with attempted aggravated murder. “The charge of attempted aggravated murder requires that we prove that a substantial step was taken toward the completion of the crime,” he said.
“This is beyond a kid playing with a couple of cherry bombs. It was serious enough to warrant calling out the bomb squad,” Albany police Capt. Eric Carter told ABC affiliate KATU-TV in Portland.
“This went above and beyond teenage curiosity,” he said.
No bombs were found in or around West Albany High School.
“I will be a little on edge,” said Dennis Riley, who attends West Albany High School. “I mean this whole thing is so scary, I mean, because of the potential that it could’ve had if somebody didn’t come forward.”
Authorities do not have a motive for the planned attack at this time.
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