Ohio Teen Tried To Build Explosive Device To Use At H.S.: Feds

CLEVELAND — An 18-year-old man from Northeast Ohio has been indicted after being accused of trying to build an explosive device to use Cuyahoga Falls High School, the Department of Justice announced Friday. The teenager was also accused of making threats toward an elementary school in Kansas.

Allen Martin Kenna, 18, of Cuyahoga Falls, was charged by the Department of Justice in a two-count indictment with attempted use of an explosive device and interstate communication of threats. Prosecutors said Kenna contacted the Fort Riley (Kansas) Sheriff's Office and told them he had a hostage inside an elementary school.

“The indictment alleges that the defendant attempted to construct an explosive device that was to be used in an attack on a local high school,” U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman stated. “The defendant is further alleged to have engaged in making interstate threats that were directed at another school in Kansas. Law enforcement takes seriously all concerns about potentially violent individuals, but where we have specific, credible threats of violence against the public, especially in our schools, we will act swiftly and with appropriate federal charges.”

On Jan. 6, staff at Cuyahoga Falls High School said they saw a man wearing black sunglasses, a black coat, black pants and a white camouflage shirt walking around the hallways, taking pictures of the school. When staffers approached the man, he ran out of the building, according to the indictment.

Kenna does not attend Cuyahoga Falls High School, but staff were able to identify him. The indictment said Kenna had made racist and threatening remarks toward the high school in the past.

When investigators searched Kenna's home and cell phone, they discovered he had been researching timed explosives, the indictment said. The indictment also detailed Kenna's journal entries, saying he planned to kill his family and had been collecting a variety of weapons.

“Thanks to the awareness of private citizens and the hard work of our law enforcement partners, what could have been a horrific and tragic day was stopped,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric B. Smith.