Sol Pais, a South Florida teenager “infatuated” with the Columbine massacre and its perpetrators and the subject of a massive manhunt in Colorado after authorities said a “potential credible threat” led Columbine High and other schools to close, is dead, authorities say.
Meanwhile, a website in the name Sol Pais leaves behind a trail of disturbed journal entries, including drawings of guns and one of the Columbine killers.
A journal entry from the website.
You can see more excerpts from the journal entries later in this article.
“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 said on Twitter. The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that Pais died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The sheriff said the 18-year-old’s body was found “not terribly far” from Columbine.
Pais was found dead in Clear Creek County at the base of Mount Evans on April 17, CBS Denver reports. Law enforcement sources told the news station that it is believed that Pais took an Uber to Echo Lake, near Mount Evans. She was found dead by suicide “several hundred feet past Echo Lake Lodge up Mount Evans Road near where the road is currently closed for the season,” CBS reports.
A woman hiking near Mount Evans told the news station she was asked to leave by police because, “a naked woman matching the description with a gun was spotted in the area running through the woods.” The news station reported that 20 to 30 officers, including members of a SWAT team, were spotted in the area.
Prior to confirming her death, the FBI tweeted, “We can confirm there is investigative activity around the base of Mt. Evans. The investigation is active and ongoing. More information will follow soon,” and “UPDATE: THERE IS NO LONGER A THREAT TO THE COMMUNITY. More information to follow shortly. #FindSol.”
Earlier, the Colorado Public Safety office said, “Sol Pais is armed and dangerous. We are operating out of an abundance of caution. The threat is not isolated to one school or individual. Federal, state, and local law enforcement are working together to keep our community safe.”
#BREAKINGNEWS
Rocky Mountain Safe Streets Task Force issues BOLO on 18 yr old
Sol Pais, wanted in connection with school threats in Denver area.
Reports she is “infatuated” with #Columbine HS massacre.
Considered armed and extremely dangerous.
Online writings in the name Sol Pais show a disturbed and depressed mentality. Heavy has reviewed the disturbing website and a Listography profile that link to that website. The website uses the username “Dissolved Girl.” Be aware the excerpts below contain graphic language. They contain the name Sol and Sol Pais, and the Listography page uses a profile photo that bears an almost identical resemblance to the law enforcement photos released of her. Although authorities have not confirmed nor denied the authenticity of the pages, they contain drawings of guns, severely depressed and rambling musings about death and life, and demonstrate a disturbed mindset. Here’s an example of a journal page with troubling comments. “Being alive is f*cking overrated,” it reads. “How do I pull it out of me? I’m f*cking empty.”
The Miami Herald reported that Miami police detectives found Pais’ “deeply disturbed” online postings after her parents reported her missing, which led to the FBI’s involvement. When that agency determined that she had flown to the Denver area, purchased a gun, and vanished, that led to the public outreach.
The bottom of the website contains the tagline “1999 – the nobodies.” The Nobodies is a song by Marilyn Manson that was inspired by the 1999 Columbine school shooting, as well as John Lennon’s killer’s comment that he “felt like a nobody,” according to the Marilyn Manson encyclopedia.
“Be the best killer you can be,” reads the tagline to the listography page that links to that site. Under the header “to do in my lifetime,” the page listed, “self destruct, burn out, walk away, reject apologies, fade.” There is also a last.fm page with the same bio picture as the website in the name Sol Pais. Its user listened to a flurry of music through the afternoon of April 15, most recently “Nine Inch Nails — Burn – From ‘Natural Born Killers’ Soundtrack.”
One of the scribbled diary pages on the website reads in part, “The fact of the matter is I was the one unfortunate enough to be Sol…I know my time is running out. And I am ensuring that my time is running out. Life is much easier when everything leads up to one day, one day which you know will occur.”
Another journal entry appears to include a drawing of one of the Columbine shooters:
A journal entry from the website.
While Sol Pais appears to have drawn pictures of the Columbine shooters and of guns, photos being shared on social media of tattoos that claim to be on her legs of guns and of the Columbine gunmen appear to be fake. The tattoo pictures purporting to be connected to Pais are either real images of tattoos that have been online for several years or are photoshopped.
Sol Pais had no obvious Facebook or Twitter pages. There is a privatized Instagram page that links to the above website.
ListopgraphySol Pais on her “Listography” page.
With the 20th anniversary of the Columbine school shooting looming in just days, authorities are taking no chances. “Colorado changed 20 years ago,” authorities said in an evening press conference, adding that the law enforcement cooperation that arose in response to the Pais situation derived from that trauma.
“This breaks my heart,” wrote one mother on Twitter. “My kids will NOT be going to school tomorrow. Sol Pais has a known infatuation with Columbine, flew here today, bought a shotgun TODAY, and was last seen in our school district.” School officials decided to close schools in the Denver area on April 17.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Sol Pais, Who Authorities Say ‘Expressed an Infatuation With Columbine’ & Bought a Pump-Action Shotgun Once She Arrived in Colorado, Appears to Have Sought Advice on a Gun Forum
GettyColumbine High School in 1999.
It all started in Florida. The Miami office of the FBI first identified a possible threat involving Pais on the morning of April 16, authorities alleged. What appears to really have escalated things, for obvious reasons: Authorities say that Sol Pais took the step of flying to the Denver area, where she bought a gun.
“She has made some concerning comments in the past. She has expressed an infatuation with Columbine and the shooting events that happened there tragically 20 years ago,” officials said at an evening press conference on April 16. That concerned authorities. They then allegedly discovered that she flew to the Denver area, left the airport and then obtained a pump-action shotgun and ammunition from a store, according to Dean Phillips, the special-agent-in-charge of the FBI in Denver.
On March 29, two days before the date of the last journal entry on the website using that name, Pais posted on a gun forum asking about how a non-Colorado resident could purchase a shotgun there. On the website for “proud gun owners,” a user with the same username as the one Sol Pais appeared to have used on her website wrote, “hello everybody. Florida resident here. I am planning a trip to Colorado in the next month or so and wanna buy a shotgun while I’m there and I was wondering what restrictions apply for me? I’ve found a few private sellers I might want to purchase from; is it legal for me as a Florida resident to purchase a shotgun in Colorado? I’m 18 years old too, if it’s important. thank you for reading, i appreciate any response!”
A person named Sol Pais appears to have joined the gun message board in January 2019. Her signature on the site reads, “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety,” a quote from Benjamin Franklin.
Two users gave advice on the post. One wrote, “If you do not have a valid Colorado driver’s license, you can buy a long gun (rifle or shotgun), and take it with you. For handgun purchases, you could buy it but you would have to have the dealer transfer it to a dealer with a Federal Firearms License (FFL), in your home state and you could pick it up there. If you live in one of the neighboring states this is a fairly common occurrence and a simple procedure.” Another said, “It is legal from a legal FFL, but not from a private party.”
The user appearing to be Pais responded, “so, as a follow up: does anybody know if it’s legal for me as an 18 year old to purchase a shotgun from an FFL if I reside in Florida instead of Colorado?”
After getting more advice, the user revealed her plans. “first of all, thank you for taking the time to answer my question and in that extent – i really do appreciate it. i’m flying in but plan on coming back in car for a road trip, and i’m aware of the law requiring that the gun be stored in a locked container, etc. i have it all planned out, have friends coming with me who own guns and know what they’re doing. i’m currently in the process of contacting both CO and FL gun stores but just wanted a second opinion, gun laws can get tricky and i want the most info i can get, even if i have to take it with a grain of salt.
The user added, “to answer your question, i just wanted to take the opportunity of this trip to buy a shotgun and go shooting/hunting somewhere nicer than FL, lol, and with friends who know more than I do. CO forests beat FL forests any day. plus if i bought the gun in FL i’d have to go through the trouble of dealing with the airport but driving back should be a simpler process. thank you again for your response!”
Sol Pais appears to have joined a forum for gun owners to ask about how to buy a shotgun in Colorado.
In another post, the user added, “i’m located in Miami (unfortunately), a majority of the people I come across here aren’t big fans of guns in general lol. i’d love to meet like minded people that live near me; the only IRL conversations I’ve had about guns with people have been in gun shops/ranges with strangers. I’ll look for shotgun clubs! thank you so much!”
When alerted to the fact that the user they had been interacting with was likely now the subject of a massive FBI manhunt, one forum member replied, “Well that’s kind of scary.”
Sol Pais has had an “infatuation with Columbine and the perpetrators of Columbine,” authorities revealed. They said the comments were “mostly spoken.” However, they said there was no threat made toward a specific school. They didn’t reveal the specific comments.
The website and Listography pages in the same name contain very disturbing comments.
A January 15, 2019 entry on the website reads, “I feel like a pot of scolding (sic) water on the verge of boiling over… so dangerously close to spilling over.. and what that may cause is yet to be seen and most likely a hazard, to myself and others. i’m afraid of my currently unknown capacity for pain and misery and anger. each time it gets exponentially worse and worse. my soul is in deep suffering and dis-belonging. i have done quite a good job at keeping all of the explosive energy inside of me but every time… worse and worse. and worse.”
An entry from September 2018 reads, “i wish i could distance myself from everybody in this f*cking world, as far away as possible from this poison that is the human race. i can’t stand anybody that surrounds me, i don’t wanna hear anymore human’s voices, only about 10 of them or less that i can stand to be around, but only one voice i truly want to hear every day and yet i can’t… life is merciless and i will always question why this universe decided to create humans.. ”
You enter the website by clicking on a skull.
The website also includes this passage.
The website contains more than 60 scanned in spiral notebook pages from a journal; the last page is signed “Sol Pais” on March 31, 2019 and contains the lyrics from a Nine Inch Nails song, “Now I just stare into the sun. And I see everything I’ve done. I think I could’ve been someone. But I can’t stop what has begun.”
Here’s another excerpt:
Her last journal entry was dated March 31, 2019. The entry includes lyrics to a Nine Inch Nails song and is signed Sol Pais:
The last journal entry on the website appearing to belong to Sol Pais.
The Instagram page that links to the website referred to “Dyl” in a comment to another person, an apparent reference to Columbine killer Dylan Klebold.
The pages give a sense of her pop culture interests. Her favorite movies included Heathers, Natural Born killers, American Psycho, and the Breakfast Club.
Authorities said there was an early lead that “someone had gone to a school” and tried to gain access to a student, but they later determined that was not Pais.
After purchasing the weapon, Pais “was then taken to an area where she was last seen toward the foothills, and we have been trying to find her ever since,” authorities said. “We do consider her to be a credible threat to the community.”
Authorities said it’s not the first time they’ve had a threat involving Columbine. They said they recognize the situation with Sol Pais is opening a “wound that people have suffered.”
Earlier in the day, Colorado authorities revealed that they had received a potential credible threat against Columbine and other schools. A short time later, they revealed they are looking for Sol Pais in connection with that threat. They later added, “Correction on the info we released earlier about Sol Pais. She was last seen last night, not today, in Colorado.”
Westword alleged that Pais is known to the FBI and authorities were concerned by the timing of her travels because of the upcoming Columbine anniversary.
“To clarify, this is in connection with the school lockouts today in Jefferson County @JeffcoSchoolsCo @FBIDenver @JeffcoColorado @JEFFCOsecurity,” authorities wrote about Sol Pais.
Multiple agencies, including the FBI, posted public alerts that named Sol Pais as the suspect. They are working with local district attorneys’ offices to develop possible charges. If she was found the night of April 16, authorities would hold her as long as they could, they said, raising the possibility they don’t have probable cause for an arrest.
2. Sol Pais Was From Surfside, Florida & the FBI Was There Interviewing Her Parents, Reports Say
Remembrance Events Announced for the Columbine 20th Anniversary. Please be aware that there are the several community events planned this week to honor and remember what occurred on April 20, 1999. Details: t.co/uQ4srji40j
Online records and one news site indicate that Sol Pais was from Florida, specifically Surfside, a community in Miami-Dade County.
She attended Miami Beach High School, according to Local10, which says her father was in “disbelief” about the circumstances and urged her to come home. On Facebook, Miami Dade Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho confirmed that Pais is a student at the high school.
“Miami-Dade County Public Schools is fully cooperating with federal and local entities regarding the case of the 18-year-old Miami Beach Senior High School student who is being sought for allegedly making threats to schools in Colorado. According to law enforcement, the student was last seen in Colorado and the threats appear to be limited to schools in that area. There is no immediate threat to Miami-Dade Schools,” Carvalho said. “However, in an abundance of caution and as a matter of prevention, we have heightened our alert systems and have disseminated information regarding this individual, including her picture, to all schools throughout the District. Law enforcement officials are conducting a comprehensive background check on this student. Based on initial information, she has not been the subject of any investigation. We will continue to remain vigilant throughout this process. We encourage you to do the same. If you See Something, Say Something by calling law enforcement officials.”
Classmates told the Miami Herald that Pais was enrolled in honors and AP classes and kept to herself. “She didn’t seem any type of way,” Jusitn Norris, 18, a senior, told the newspaper. “She was just bad at starting conversations.”
Eliana Donaire told the newspaper that Pais was known to wear dark and baggy clothing that hung off her skinny frame. “She was very quiet. I would usually see her doing homework … she didn’t seem weird,” Donaire, a senior, told the Herald.
According to Denver7 News, when a reporter went to a Surfside address associated with Sol Pais, “an FBI agent answered the door and told reporters they couldn’t say anything about why they were at the home.”
In Surfside where law enforcement officers are at a home. Neighbors told cbs 4 police and FBI were also here last night. A woman who lives here, according to neighbors, is the same woman who is accused of making threats to Columbine and neighboring schools in Colorado. @CBSMiami
The Denver Post attempted to call Pais’ parents in Florida but the FBI was there interviewing them.
BREAKING: Investigators leave home of Sol Pais- a south Florida woman accused of making threats against Denver schools, including Columbine. Neighbors tell me police have been out here since yesterday. @nbc6
The alleged threat comes just four days before the 20th anniversary of the April 20, 1999 Columbine attack in which students murdered 12 students and one teacher at Columbine High. April 16 is the 12th anniversary of the Virginia Tech mass shooting, which occurred on April 16, 2007.
SOUTH FLORIDA CONNECTION? FBI Miami at a home records show is connected to a Sol Pais, wanted in connection for allegedly making threats in Colorado days before Columbine anniversary
Sol Pais wouldn’t be the first female suspect accused of having an infatuation with the Columbine killers; for example, in 2018, Elizabeth “Bee” Ridge LeCron was accused of purchasing pipe bomb materials to attack a restaurant in Ohio. She allegedly made a drawing featuring the Columbine killers.
3. A Neighbor Described Sol Pais as a ‘Reclusive’ Black T-Shirt-Wearing Teen Who Didn’t Make Eye Contact
The @FBIDenver & JCSO are asking for the public’s help regarding a potential credible threat. Last night Sol Pais traveled to Colorado & made threats. She is armed & considered to be extremely dangerous 1/3
Neighbors thought some things about Sol Pais were a little off.
“She didn’t say hello, good morning, how are you. She kept to herself. She wasn’t nasty but reclusive,” a neighbor, Jack Reiner, told Daily Mail.
Another neighbor told Daily Mail: “She was strange girl, quiet and withdrawn but then she was a teenager after all. She usually wore a black t-shirt and jeans but her look didn’t strike me as unusual. She never looked looked anyone in the eye when they talked to her.”
The announcement that Sol Pais was the suspect came after authorities indicated that Columbine High School and a slew of other schools in the Denver, Colorado area had received “what appears to be a credible threat possibly involving the schools,” and were on “lockout,” meaning no one could get in or out, authorities say. However, school officials later said that students and staff are safe and will now be released from school normally. They were taking precautions, however.
“The @FBIDenver & JCSO are asking for the public’s help regarding a potential credible threat. Last night Sol Pais traveled to Colorado & made threats. She is armed & considered to be extremely dangerous,” wrote the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department on Twitter.
CBS also reported that Sol Pais is the suspect in the Columbine and other school threats. Authorities indicated that people should approach Sol Pais with caution.
“Please call the FBI tipline at (303) 630-6227 where your call will be answered immediately if you have seen this individual or have information on her whereabouts. Please do not approach her as she is considered armed and dangerous,” wrote the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department.
4. The Teenager’s Dad Is a Musician & the Family Is Originally From Argentina, Reports Say
Bergens
Blue Heron
Columbine HS
Conifer HS
Dutch Creek
Elk Creek
Evergreen HS
Evergreen Middle
Governor’s Ranch
Ken Caryl Middle
Leawood
Marshdale
Mt. Evans
Normandy
Parmalee
Ralston
Rocky Mtn Acad of Egreen
West Jeff Elementary
West Jeff MS
Wilmot
Windy Peak
Woodrow Wilson West
Reiner, the neighbor, told the British publication: “Her family have rented the house for eight or nine years, I believe they are from Argentina. People go to the father for music lessons.”
Posts on Facebook and online indicate the father is from Buenos Aires, gives guitar lessons, and is in an Argentinian band in South Florida. Another neighbor told Daily Mail: “My son rides the bus with her. Her parents are as sweet as can be. Her father is a musician. I invited them to my Christmas party.”
Her dad told Daily Mail she might have a “mental problem” and had been gone since Sunday.
Authorities had released Sol Pais’ ethnicity as white.
The School District also posted about the information on April 16, 2019, writing, “We have placed #ColumbineHighSchool, #LeawoodElementary, @bhelementaryco and all mountain schools on lockout. No further information at this time. Lockout means biz as usual inside buildings, entry/exit restricted.”
The Jefferson County School District previously confirmed what it means by Mountain Schools: “To clarify, mountain schools include Evergreen High, Evergreen Middle, Conifer High, West Jeff Middle, West Jeff Elementary, Bergens, Wilmot Elementary, Marshdale Elementary, Elk Creek Elementary, Ralston Elementary, Rocky Mountain Academy, Parmalee Elementary.”
The school district also announced that after-school activities at Columbine were cancelled as a precautionary measure.
“All after-school activities, sports, and practices will occur as scheduled EXCEPT for Columbine High School where all such activities are canceled,” the district wrote. “Schools who were in lockout will remain in lockout until their normal release time.”
There have been other lockouts at Columbine in the past since the mass shooting tragedy.
Police were searching the area for a suspicious person, according to The Denver Post. The Post reported that the alleged threat was not made against a specific school. The Post reported that a lockout is a less serious measure than a lockdown.
5. Sol Pais Had Last Been Seen in the Foothills of Jefferson County Wearing Camouflage Pants, Authorities Say
“Have You Seen this Woman?” the Sheriff’s Department started its Facebook post on the matter.
“The FBI Denver Division and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office are asking for the public’s help regarding a potential credible threat in the Denver metropolitan area related to the lockouts at Jeffco Public Schools today,” the Facebook post says. “Last night Sol Pais traveled to Colorado and made threats in the Denver metropolitan area. She is armed and considered to be extremely dangerous.”
Authorities provided this description of Sol Pais: “She is a white female, 18 years old, approximately 5’5″ in height, with brown hair. She was last seen wearing a black t-shirt, camouflage pants, and black boots. She was last seen in the foothills of Jefferson County.”
The Aurora Police Department also shared information on the woman, writing, “#APDAlert @jeffcosheriffco is requesting to be on the look out for Sol Pais regarding the potential credible threat to the Denver area. She traveled to CO & made threats to commit acts of violence. SHE IS ARMED & CONSIDERED EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. Pleases call 911 if seen.”
“The threat being investigated is to schools in general, and we are working together across the metro area to gather more information. We will keep everyone updated as soon as we can, in the meantime in Aurora we are increasing police presence at our schools,” the Aurora Police Department wrote.
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