A mother from Texas is accused of having bought ammunition and tactical equipment for her son, who, according to investigators, provided that “mass targeted violence” in a school in San Antonio, according to an arrest affidavit.
Ashley Pardo, 33, was arrested on Monday and charged with a contribution to the terrorism committee. The authorities say that she provided her son with the material support and the resources of the knowledge they are used to plan and carry out an attack. The alleged plot has placed Jeremiah Rhodes Middle School “in a new fear of serious bodily injuries”, according to an arrest affidavit of the county of Bexar obtained by the affiliate of CNN Ksat.
Although he was contacted by local police, child protection services and school staff – and knowing his son’s desire to “commit acts of mass violence” – Pardo declared to school that she was not concerned about his behavior, says Affidavit. The authorities say that she bought tactical equipment, ammunition and supplies for her son in exchange for babysitting from her young brothers and sisters. She “helped intentionally and knowingly” her son, declares the Affidavit.
“The accused’s refusal to see (that of his son) concerning the behavior and his help to bring together articles for him that have been used in other acts of massive mass violence, it is believed that she facilitates the (boy) desire to carry out his threats,” said the authorities in the Affidavit.
Pardo’s deposit was set at $ 75,000 and was released from Bexar County prison on Tuesday after depositing a deposit, according to the county files. His next appearance in court is scheduled for July 17. She asked a lawyer committed a court.
CNN contacted Pardo and the public defender’s office to comment.
According to the Affidavit, on May 12, the boy went to school “wearing a mask, a camouflage jacket and tactical pants”, then left shortly after. When the authorities were unable to locate it, school officials feared returning to carry out an attack, the affidavit indicates. Additional security has been implemented, in particular in deployment of additional police officers and sweeping campus for potential devices, the authorities said.
The student was then detained outside campuses, the school said in a letter to parents on Monday. CNN contacted the San Antonio police service for more information.
“Please know that we take all the potential threats seriously and act immediately to protect all those who have custody,” said school director in the letter. “We will always remain vigilant to make sure that our learning and work environment is safe.
The Affidavit indicates on Monday that the student’s grandmother reported to the San Antonio police that she had found disturbing items in her house in her grands’ room. According to the Affidavit, the grandmother learned the day before that Pardo had given her ammunition. She told the authorities that Pardo had taken her to a local surplus store and bought tactical equipment, including magazines, a tactical vest capable of hiding ballistic plates, tactical helmet and army clothes.
She also found magazines loaded with live ammunition, as well as a homemade explosive apparatus made from a mortar style fireworks, according to the Affidavit. Written on the aircraft was “for Brenton Tarrant”, a white supremacist who killed 51 people in two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand in 2019. The authorities said that it also included the expression “14 words” and several symbols “SS”, all linked to the white supremacist ideology.
The boy’s grandmother also found a handwritten note with what seemed to be the names of the mass shooters and the number of victims of each shooting, said affidavit. On Monday morning, before going to school, he told him that he was “going to be famous” and referred to “14 words,” said the Affidavit.
It was not the first time that school officials have been concerned about the boy’s behavior.
In January, the school staff found drawings by the student who included an “suicide” labeled card, the name of the school written with a rifle and several horodatages, according to the affidavit. When questioned, the student “described a fascination for former mass shooters, including their manifests,” said Affidavit.
About a month ago, the boy was suspended for having used a computer emitted from school to search for the shootings of the New Zealand mosque, according to Affidavit.
“He was expressed to defendant the concerns of his child’s expression and desire to commit acts of mass violence,” said Affidavit about Pardo. “The accused expressed at school his support for the expressions and violent drawings of his son and does not feel concerned about his behavior.”
The student attended an alternative school in April, according to the Affidavit. When he returned to Rhodes Middle School in May, officials implemented a security plan due to the permanent concerns concerning potential targeted violence, the affidavit indicates.
CNN contacted the school and the independent school district of San Antonio to comment.
