Greece Police say four people are facing charges of criminal possession of a weapon and conspiracy -- after a suspicious comment made by a student at Greece Odyssey school on Friday led police to uncover a much bigger plot.
Police say a 16-year-old student made a comment to other students during the lunch hour, showing a photo of a man he said looked like 'the next school shooter.' Those students told adults, and Police Chief Patrick Phelan says they started getting more information after interviewing the student.
Phelan says further investigation led to the other three adult suspects: 19-year-old Vincent Vetromile, 18-year-old Andrew Crysel and 20-year-old Brian Colaneri. Each has been charged with criminal possession of a weapon and conspiracy. The 16-year-old Odyssey student has also been charged, although details haven’t been released yet.
Several search warrants were executed and 23 guns, three IED's and several electronic devices were seized. Greece and State Police say the four were conspiring to launch a bomb attack on Islamberg, a gated Muslim community located about half-an-hour’s drive east of Binghamton, on the New York/Pennsylvania border.
Islamberg has been the subject of a planned attack once before. A Tennessee man is serving a 20 year prison term for a plot against the village.
Police say the investigation is ongoing and more charges COULD be filed, including federal charges.
Police say the students who “saw something and said something” definitely prevented a serious incident and possible loss of life.