The 18-year-old woman authorities say made a “credible threat” to Columbine High School and other Denver-area public schools is dead.
The FBI confirmed that Sol Pais was found dead on Wednesday but did not immediately explain how the death occurred. A woman who was jogging in the area said she was told by law enforcement officials to vacate the area because “a naked woman matching the description with a gun was spotted in the area running through the woods” on Wednesday.
Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Shrader confirmed Wednesday that Pais was discovered by FBI officials with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
“We can confirm that Sol Pais is deceased. We are grateful to everyone who submitted tips and to all our law enforcement partners for their efforts in keeping our community safe,” the FBI Denver division tweeted.
We can confirm that Sol Pais is deceased. We are grateful to everyone who submitted tips and to all our law enforcement partners for their efforts in keeping our community safe.
— FBI Denver (@FBIDenver) April 17, 2019
Some 30 armed authorities, including a SWAT team, closed in on Pais near the Echo Lake Campground in the Arapaho National Forest. Officials say the search for Pais was centered at the base of Mount Evans, just a few miles away from Denver’s city center.
On Tuesday, authorities identified Pais, a Miami Beach, Fla., native, as the main suspect in its investigation into the threats. She was described as a white woman, about 5-feet, 5 inches tall with brown hair. Jefferson County officials confirmed her presence in the area was the motive behind calling the schools’ lockdown.
Law enforcement officials said they believe she had an obsession with the deadly 1999 Columbine shooting.
The threats came four days short of the 20th anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting, when two of the school’s students, Dylan Klebold, 17, and Eric Harris, 18, killed 12 students and one teacher. The pair had also planted small homemade bombs around the campus, although they did not explode. Law enforcement officials have not publicly made any connection between the threats and the anniversary of the shooting.
The FBI and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office led the investigation.
