Students at Ontario Christian High School in Ontario, California, avoided what could have been a major tragedy thanks to the actions of a vigilant student. Police on Wednesday arrested Sebastian Villasenor, an 18-year-old student who had an alarming fascination with school shootings and access to a significant amount of firearms.
Villasenor had been actively putting together a plan to carry out a mass shooting at the high school when he was taken into custody.
An 18-year-old student authorities say had researched school shootings and had an arsenal of guns at his home was charged Wednesday with planning to attack a Southern California campus.
Sebastian Villasenor of Eastvale was charged with five counts of attempted murder and one count of attempting to make criminal threats, the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement. He remained jailed.
It wasn’t immediately clear whether he had a lawyer to speak on his behalf. The DA’s office said it didn’t have information on whether Villasenor had representation but added that a lawyer would appear or could be appointed at his scheduled Thursday arraignment.
Investigators discovered that Villasenor “had every intention of carrying out a school shooting at the Ontario Christian High School” in Ontario, city Police Chief Michael Lorenz said at a news conference.
The would-be school shooter had access to a considerable stockpile of weapons and ammunition that was legally owned by his parents. He had been carefully creating a detailed plan of attack on his school.
In addition to having “over a thousand rounds” of ammunition along with 11 weapons, including seven rifles and one shotgun, Lorenz said the teen carefully mapped out his violent plot.
”He was so obsessed with our response times that he Google-mapped how far it would be from the Ontario Police Department for our response time to the school,” Lorenz said.
Investigators and school administrators credited Villasenor’s high school classmate for stopping what would have been another devasting campus shooting.
“The student who came forward, who saw something and said something, is a hero,” Lorenz said. “That student saved lives, spared families from losing their children, and a community from being devastated from a senseless act of violence.”
Villasenor was also fixated on the 1999 shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado.
Investigators said Villasenor was particularly focused on the Columbine High School shooting, which occurred on April 20, 1999, in Littleton, Colorado. Two students, both seniors, murdered twelve other students and one teacher during the horrific tragedy.
“April 20 this year happens to be on a weekend, so we believe it was going to be some time around that time frame,” the chief said of Villasenor’s possible schedule for carrying out his plan.
Luckily, this classmate noticed Villasenor’s disturbing obsession with school shootings and did the right thing. If he had remained silent, there is no telling how many children and members of school staff might have lost their lives when the would-be shooter decided to put his deadly plan into action.
The foiled plot at Ontario Christian High School is another reminder of the dangers lurking within many of our communities. It is another case in which gun control laws couldn’t have possibly stopped this potential tragedy. As indicated earlier, Villasenor’s parents legally owned the firearms. Additionally, the would-be shooter had no criminal record and the authorities were not alerted to any potential mental health issues.
It is also worth mentioning that mass shootings still happen even in cases where the authorities have been alerted to the shooter’s behavior and mental health issues. This reality was on full display in the attempted mass shooting at Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, on Feb. 11.
The bottom line is that gun control laws do not stop mass shootings. In this case, it took the action of a student who was willing to speak up. In other cases, employing security measures at schools to make them harder targets is a more effective way to deter or stop would-be mass shooters. Hopefully, this case, along with others will wake people up to the truth: Gun control does not save lives.
Such actions that save lives are not reported by the news. Teachers and fellow students who speak up must be kept confidential. this ensures any who witness strange behavior are protected from retaliation. it also prevents students who have the “Hero” syndrome and want public attention. it also protects students from ridicule for speaking up. even a small piece of evidence or threat to another student or teacher can be investigated without public knowledge. While true it will result in false investigations it can also save lives. one life saved is worth it————I, Grampa