Updated October 22, 2026, 1:27 p.m. ET
Two teenage girls have been arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit murder after police say they plotted for months to commit a shooting at a Southern California high school.
The teens, both 15, planned to carry out the shooting at Corona High School, according to police in Corona, California, a city of about 160,000 in Riverside County, about 50 miles from downtown Los Angeles.
The Corona Police Department said it first became aware of the threat on Oct. 6 from the FBI, which identified concerning communications on social media regarding a possible school threat against Corona High School. The investigation led to the “immediate” arrest of a suspect, a student at Corona High School, police said in a statement on October 20.
Police executed search warrants at several residences and identified a second suspect, 15, a student at nearby Norco High School, the release said. She was also arrested. The Norco student had previously attended Corona High School, the Corona-Norco Unified School District said in a statement.
“Evidence obtained shows that the two suspects spent several months researching school shootings and how they could carry out a potential attack at Corona High School at an unspecified future date,” police said.
They also explained how they could obtain weapons, but have not yet been able to do so, police said. No weapons were found during the searches.
Both teens face charges of conspiracy to commit murder and are in custody, police said. Their identities have not been released.
Sgt. Brandon Palaoro told USA TODAY that revenge appears to be a part of the motive. The teens had a list of names and maps of the school, he said. Police were able to identify and contact most of the people on the list of potential targets, Palaoro said.
“Safety measures and collaboration thwarted a serious plan made by two teenagers who clearly have problems. This incident is a stark reminder that threats exist, but collaborative and rapid action by the community, schools and law enforcement is what protects our children,” Palaoro said.
Neither student has been on campus since the investigation began, the school district said.
“We understand that hearing news like this can be unsettling for families, and we want our parents to know that the safety and well-being of our students and staff remains our highest priority,” the Corona-Norco Unified School District said.
USA TODAY has contacted the FBI for more information.
News of the arrests comes days after a 16-year-old shooting suspect in Oregon opened fire in an elementary school special education classroom, killing three young children and a teacher. It was the 28th mass killing of the year in the United States, including 21 shootings, according to James Alan Fox of the Associated Press/USA TODAY/Northeastern University Mass Killing Database.
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