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| Officials Seek Woman ‘Infatuated’ With Columbine Who Made Threats in Denver Area | Officials Seek Woman ‘Infatuated’ With Columbine Who Made Threats in Denver Area |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| DENVER — The F.B.I. and law enforcement officials in Colorado were searching on Tuesday for a woman who they said had made threats in the Denver area and was armed and “extremely dangerous.” Security was tightened at schools across the region, with the threats coming just days ahead of the 20th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting. | DENVER — The F.B.I. and law enforcement officials in Colorado were searching on Tuesday for a woman who they said had made threats in the Denver area and was armed and “extremely dangerous.” Security was tightened at schools across the region, with the threats coming just days ahead of the 20th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting. |
| An F.B.I. bulletin sent to local law enforcement identified the woman as Sol Pais, 18. She was “infatuated” with the Columbine attack, the bulletin said, and had been “attempting to buy firearms.” | An F.B.I. bulletin sent to local law enforcement identified the woman as Sol Pais, 18. She was “infatuated” with the Columbine attack, the bulletin said, and had been “attempting to buy firearms.” |
| Officials also released an image of Ms. Pais, and said she was approximately 5-foot-5, with brown hair. She had recently traveled to Colorado, they said. Records show that Ms. Pais is from Surfside, Fla., in Miami-Dade County. | |
| In a news conference Tuesday night, Dean Phillips, the special agent in charge of the F.B.I.’s office in Denver, said the search had turned into a “massive manhunt.” Mr. Phillips said his team had received a tip that morning from federal agents in Miami identifying Ms. Pais as a possible threat in Colorado. | |
| The F.B.I. then discovered that Ms. Pais had arrived at the Denver airport before buying a pump-action shotgun and ammunition at a store. “She was then taken to an area where she was last seen out toward the foothills,” Mr. Phillips said. | |
| “Her comments, her actions that we have heard about from others tend to cause us great concern that she may pose a threat to a school,” he added. | |
| If authorities find Ms. Pais, it is not clear if they can arrest her. The bulletin sent to local police said they did not have probable cause for arrest, but that officers should detain her “and evaluate mental health status.” | |
| In Florida, The Miami Herald reported that a man who answered the door at Ms. Pais’s address on Tuesday identified himself as her father and said he had lost contact with her on Sunday. “I think maybe she’s got a mental problem,” he told The Herald. “I think she’s going to be O.K.” | |
| In Colorado, the announcement prompted “lockouts,” or heightened security measures, at schools in Jefferson County and the surrounding area. During a lockout, all exterior doors are locked at a school but business continues as usual inside. Police officers aided in end-of-day student release. County officials said that all students and staff members were safe. | In Colorado, the announcement prompted “lockouts,” or heightened security measures, at schools in Jefferson County and the surrounding area. During a lockout, all exterior doors are locked at a school but business continues as usual inside. Police officers aided in end-of-day student release. County officials said that all students and staff members were safe. |
| During the Columbine High School shooting, on April 20, 1999, two students shot and killed 12 of their classmates and a teacher. | During the Columbine High School shooting, on April 20, 1999, two students shot and killed 12 of their classmates and a teacher. |
| The shooting’s aftermath was widely televised, and the event became a source of inspiration for future attackers. Jefferson County, home to Columbine High School, has spent the past 20 years grappling with that legacy. | The shooting’s aftermath was widely televised, and the event became a source of inspiration for future attackers. Jefferson County, home to Columbine High School, has spent the past 20 years grappling with that legacy. |
| Students, teachers, families and law enforcement officers have had to deal not only with the emotional trauma of the shooting, but also with people who have become obsessed with it, as well as copycats who have carried out their own attacks. | Students, teachers, families and law enforcement officers have had to deal not only with the emotional trauma of the shooting, but also with people who have become obsessed with it, as well as copycats who have carried out their own attacks. |
| In an interview last year, the head of safety for Jefferson County schools, John McDonald, said he had often apprehended people who came from around the country to try to enter the school, a major safety concern. These visits — and interest in the shooting — have only increased over time, he said: “I’ve been dealing with this for more than a decade and it’s never been more of an issue than it is now, 20 years later.” | |
| The approaching anniversary has put many people in the region on edge, and in the last week, the county has implemented lockouts on multiple days. | The approaching anniversary has put many people in the region on edge, and in the last week, the county has implemented lockouts on multiple days. |
| On Tuesday night, parents still did not know if Denver-area schools would be open in the morning. | |
| “We are holding off on that decision,” said Stan Hilkey, the head of the state’s public safety department, adding that the situation was “changing by the minute.” |