Woman Kills Herself After Sparking School Closings Over Columbine Threat

A Florida woman who is said to be infatuated with the Columbine school shooting and posed a “credible threat” to the Denver area community and schools was found dead Wednesday, the FBI has said.

Sol Pais, 18, was armed when she was found dead on Wednesday, the FBI said. She had apparently killed herself, Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Shrader said at a news conference.

Earlier in the day, the FBI said in a tweet that there was “investigative activity” near Mount Evans in Colorado. In a followup tweet, the FBI said there is “no longer a threat to the community.”

Schools throughout the Denver area, including Denver Public Schools and Jefferson County Public Schools, will reopen Thursday with heightened security after closing Wednesday as authorities searched for Pais.

“Looking ahead, we are planning on returning to normal school operations tomorrow with heightened safety and security procedures, and ongoing vigilance in the days to come,” Jefferson County superintendent Jason Glass told reporters.

Pais was alleged to have an “infatuation” with the Columbine shooting, and traveled to Colorado from Miami on Monday night, police said. A spokesperson for the Miami-Dade County Public Schools said Pais was a student at Miami Beach High School, according to the Associated Press.

Pais did not make a specific threat, but her actions in the days leading up to the 20th anniversary of the Columbine mass shooting raised alarm, police said. Pais traveled to Colorado and legally purchased a firearm in the Littleton, Co. area, Shrader told reporters. He said Pais was likely acting alone.

“Everything that I have heard in briefings does not indicate that she had any assistance or friends in the area,” he said. “Just a fascination with the Columbine area, and the horrendous crime that went on there 20 years ago,” he said.

The sheriff’s office on Tuesday said in a Facebook post that Pais “made threats in the Denver metropolitan area.”

“She is armed and considered to be extremely dangerous,” police said on Tuesday.

Twelve students and one teacher were killed at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999 by two students in what became the deadliest school shooting at the time. A number of school shootings have followed the massacre, including some that are believed to be copycat attacks. The shooting at Columbine has become a subject of fascination, particularly online among people who call themselves “Columbiners.”

If you or someone you know may be contemplating suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or text HOME to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line. In emergencies, call 911, or seek care from a local hospital or mental health provider.