Two 15-year-old girls are facing charges of conspiracy to commit murder after investigators say they spent months researching school shootings and discussing a potential attack on Corona High School. One suspect, a Corona High student, was arrested after the FBI flagged online communications about a possible threat; a second suspect, a Norco High School student, was identified and arrested as the investigation widened. Both remain in custody, and no weapons were ever recovered.
According to a release from the City of Corona, the FBI notified the Corona Police Department on October 6 that it had identified online social media communications regarding a possible school threat to Corona High School. That tip led to the immediate arrest of a 15-year-old female Corona High School student, the city says. Detectives then served numerous search warrants tied to electronic devices and communications and searched several residences across Riverside County, which led them to a second suspect — a 15-year-old female Norco High School student.
The evidence gathered, per the same release, showed the two suspects had spent several months researching school shootings and discussed how they might carry out an attack at Corona High School on an unspecified future date. Communications also showed the suspects discussed methods to obtain weapons but had not yet succeeded in doing so, and no weapons were located during the searches. Both juveniles now remain in custody on charges of conspiracy to commit murder.
FBI Los Angeles Posts About Corona School Threat Case
FBI Los Angeles posted about the investigation and directed readers to the Corona Police Department.
FBI Los Angeles reported arrests in connection with the case.
Patel said two individuals were taken into custody and that the investigation remains ongoing. “There is no greater priority than protecting our kids, and threats against our schools will be met with the full force of the FBI and our partners,” he said, thanking the Corona Police Department and FBI Los Angeles staff for their work. He urged anyone who sees something concerning online or in their community to report it to tips.fbi.gov or 1-800-CALL-FBI.
Why Weapons-Free Searches Still Support Conspiracy Charges
Establishing a conspiracy charge under California Penal Code Section 182 requires prosecutors to prove an unlawful agreement and at least one overt act taken toward executing a plan — it does not require that weapons were actually obtained or that the offense was carried out, according to Eisner Gorin LLP. Under that standard, weapons need not have been recovered for a conspiracy charge to be brought.
A conviction for conspiracy to commit murder is punished as first-degree murder under California law, according to FindLaw.
State Law Requires Rapid Reporting of School Threats
California Education Code Section 49393, enacted under Senate Bill 906 in 2022, legally requires school officials who observe or are alerted to a homicidal threat involving middle or high school students to immediately report it to local law enforcement, per the California Department of Education. That statutory framework sits alongside the FBI's National Threat Operations Center, which the FBI says processes more than 1.4 million tips annually, including nearly 1,500 actionable threat-to-life leads tied specifically to school shooting threats in 2023.
Corona High School, founded in 1896 as the area's first high school, now enrolls roughly 2,300 students in grades 9 through 12, according to Niche. Norco High School, established in 1966, serves more than 2,000 students, per Wikipedia. Both campuses fall within the Corona-Norco Unified School District, which spans 53 schools and more than 49,000 students across Corona, Norco, and Eastvale, making it the largest public school district in Riverside County, according to Public School Review.
The case follows a prior juvenile school threat arrest in Riverside County in 2024, underscoring a recurring local pattern of early-stage threat cases moving through the juvenile justice system.
