Two 15-Year-Old Girls Arrested on Murder Conspiracy Charges in California School Shooting Plot

Two 15-year-old girls were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder after the FBI uncovered an alleged months-long plot to carry out a shooting at Corona High School in Southern California. Investigators say the teenagers researched previous school shootings, discussed how to carry out an attack, and explored ways to obtain weapons before authorities intervened.

Neither girl had obtained a weapon, according to the Corona Police Department, which announced the arrests on October 20, 2026. Both teenagers remain in custody as the Riverside County District Attorney's Office reviews the case.

The investigation began October 6, when the FBI alerted Corona police to social media communications indicating a possible threat against Corona High School. Detectives arrested a 15-year-old student at the school before searches involving electronic devices, online communications, and residences across Riverside County led authorities to a second suspect, a girl of the same age attending Norco High School.

Police say the teenagers spent several months researching previous school shootings and discussing how to carry out an attack at Corona High School on an unspecified future date. Their communications included potential methods for acquiring firearms, although investigators determined they had been unsuccessful in obtaining any.

Searches of several residences yielded no weapons. The suspected motive, intended victims, and timing of the alleged attack remain undisclosed, and authorities have withheld the teenagers' identities because they are minors.

The alleged planning led to conspiracy to commit murder allegations against both girls, allowing authorities to pursue criminal proceedings over a suspected agreement to carry out a killing before an attack occurs.

Under California Penal Code Section 182, prosecutors must establish that at least two people agreed and intended to commit murder and that one participant took an overt act to advance the plan. Such an act can occur before weapons are acquired and may involve conduct that is otherwise lawful.

The teenagers' electronic communications are central to the investigation. Prosecutors would need to establish that the evidence demonstrates a criminal agreement, the intent to kill, and conduct advancing the alleged conspiracy beyond the agreement itself.

Because both suspects were 15 when the alleged conduct occurred and were apprehended while still minors, their cases fall under California's juvenile justice system. State law generally limits transfers to adult criminal court to offenses committed at age 16 or older, with a narrow exception involving certain younger offenders apprehended after juvenile court jurisdiction ends.

FBI Director Kash Patel described the investigation as having disrupted a potential act of targeted violence against a Southern California high school before anyone was harmed. Federal agents worked alongside Corona police, the Riverside County Sheriff's Office, and the Corona-Norco Unified School District.

The Riverside County District Attorney's Office is reviewing the evidence to determine whether to pursue formal juvenile court allegations. As of the October 20 police announcement, prosecutors had not publicly confirmed a charging decision.