Rockville Teen Guilty Of Threatening Shooting At MoCo School

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD — A Rockville teen who wrote a 129-page manifesto about carrying out a school shooting was found guilty Wednesday of one count of threatening mass violence, according to a report.

Judge Jill Cummins found 18-year-old Alex Ye guilty following a two-day bench trial, Bethesda Magazine reported. His sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 28.

Ye was arrested and charged in April 2024 following a joint investigation by Montgomery County police and the FBI. According to police, the FBI notified county authorities about a 129-page "manifesto" authored by Ye, in which he wrote about committing a school shooting and how to carry out the act. In the manifesto, Ye contemplated targeting an elementary school and stated that he wanted to be famous.

Court documents obtained by the Washington Post said the manifesto read like a work of fiction about a character named "James Wang." Told in a first-person perspective, an acquaintance of Ye’s told investigators the character bore “striking similarities” to Ye.

“The story focused on a transgender main character being bullied in school and other issues that (the acquaintance) believed were directly from Ye’s life and not indicative of fiction,” investigators wrote in an affidavit obtained by the Post.

A passage from the manifesto read, "As I walk through the hallways, I cherry-pick the classrooms that are the easiest targets."

Authorities said Ye also researched topics related to shootings online, including "gun ranges near me." He also researched school shootings including the Columbine shooting, a video game about the Sandy Hook shooting and the Parkland school shooter’s sentence.

According to the Post, Ye had been hospitalized for mental health issues — including homicidal and suicidal ideation — at least three times since late 2022.

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