Denver Schools closed; Police search for a woman with "craze" for Columbine: NPR

A student left Columbine High School Tuesday night in Littleton, Colorado. The authorities claim that they are looking for a woman they believe poses a credible threat.

David Zalubowski / AP

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David Zalubowski / AP

A student left Columbine High School Tuesday night in Littleton, Colorado. The authorities claim that they are looking for a woman they believe poses a credible threat.

David Zalubowski / AP

More than a dozen Colorado school districts are closed Wednesday after the FBI and local law enforcement officials warned an "armed and dangerous" 18-year-old white woman in the Denver metro area .

On Monday, Sol Pais flew from Miami to Denver and "immediately" bought a shotgun and ammunition, the FBI Special Agent in Denver, Dean, told reporters Phillips, Tuesday night.

Pais had "made disturbing comments in the past" and had a "craze" for the 1999 shooting at Columbine High School and its authors, Phillips said at the press conference. She was last seen in the foothills of Jefferson County in the greater Denver area.

Phillips said the law enforcement agencies did not have any specific information about a threat to a particular school, but that they thought it was "a credible threat to the community." and potentially for schools ".

"It has become a massive human hunt," Phillips said, adding that many law enforcement agencies were looking for Pais.

The twentieth anniversary of the shooting of Columbine is Saturday.

Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock said the Denver public schools will be closed on Wednesday. The Jefferson County Public Schools (JeffCo), of which Columbine is a part, are also closed. Fourteen other school districts in the area are also closed, according to Colorado Public Radio.

Pais had not yet been charged with a crime Tuesday night, Phillips told reporters. Phillips said the FBI was working with federal prosecutors and that local authorities were working with local prosecutors to lay charges against Pais.

From now on, if Pais were found immediately, "we will keep it as long as we can legally," said Phillips.

Pais has no known links with Colorado, Phillips said.

Columbine High School and many others in Jefferson County were "locked out" on Tuesday, which means that admissions and exits are limited while courses continue as usual.

"We take these threats seriously," Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Shrader told reporters. This is "not the first threat" to involve or refer to Columbine, he said, and "I know this opens a sore, especially during the anniversary week of his anniversary".

Two Columbine High School students killed 13 people, injured 24 others, and committed suicide on April 20, 1999. The incident inspired more school shootings, according to researchers and journalists.

Since then, Jefferson County Public Schools have built this The Washington Post described as "probably the most sophisticated school security system in the country", with remote-controlled locks, cameras, a 24-hour help desk, monitoring some students and their social media accounts, etc.