The FBI in July investigated social media accounts connected to the 16-year-old who shot two students and then himself at Evergreen High School last week, but did not identify the boy or take any further action before the attack, the agency confirmed Monday. Via The Denver Post:
The FBI “opened an assessment into a social media account user whose identity was unknown and who was discussing the planning of a mass shooting with threats non-specific in nature,” the agency said in a statement.
“During the assessment investigation, the identity of the account user remained unknown, and thus there was no probable cause for arrest or additional law enforcement action at the federal level,” the statement continued.
The FBI's investigation, first reported by 9News, continued until Wednesday's attack at the high school in the Jefferson County foothills, the FBI said.
The Anti-Defamation League, which monitors online threats, tipped the FBI to 16-year-old Desmond Holly's accounts, Oren Segal, the organization's senior vice president of counter-extremism and intelligence, said in a statement Monday. The ADL regularly shares information with law enforcement.
"We shared profiles and activity at the time with law enforcement for actions they deemed necessary based on what was available at the time," Segal said in the statement. "We have since learned those profiles belonged to the individual responsible for the shooting in Evergreen."
The teen shooter's social media accounts showed that he was likely involved in online extremism that calls for violence as a way to destroy society, experts told The Denver Post. His accounts included a mix of white supremacy, antisemitism and a fascination with violence and mass shootings, including the 1999 Columbine High School massacre.
