Teenager, 17, ‘plotted new Columbine’

Police have foiled a potentially “catastrophic” school bomb plot by a 17-year-old Florida boy that aimed to claim more victims than the 1999 Columbine massacre.

Jared Cano – who adopted the chilling motto “Lessons not learned in blood are soon forgotten” – was planning a revenge attack on Freedom High School in Tampa, from which he was expelled 16 months ago, and had spelled out his deadly intentions in a journal that included sketches of classroom layouts.

Had officers not intervened, Cano would likely have pulled off a “potentially catastrophic event, the likes of which the city of Tampa has not seen and hopefully never will,” said the local police chief, Jane Castor.

Cano, who posted a picture of himself brandishing a machete on his Facebook page, was found with bomb-making materials including fuses, timers, shrapnel and fuel sources in his bedroom.

“Bomb experts said the materials he had could be made into explosive devices,” said Ms Castor. “Officers also found a manifesto written by Jared that outlined minute by minute what his actions were going to be on the first day of school to include detonating explosive devices through the school. There were two individual faculty members that were targeted and then he also included his desire to cause more casualties than were suffered at Columbine,” she said.

Teenagers Eric Karris and Dylan Klebold killed 12 students and one teacher when they opened fire at Columbine High School in Colorado in April 1999, and injured 21 others, before turning their guns on themselves. It was the fourth deadliest school shooting in the US.

Cano was expelled in April 2010 over “inappropriate behaviour” off campus.