NEW: Kash Patel, FBI Foil School Shooting Plot

A teenager preparing to carry out a school shooting in New York was intercepted by FBI authorities acting on a tip, Director Kash Patel announced on Friday.

The boy had a loaded gun in his possession when police took him into custody, Patel explained in a post on X. He credited the National Threat Operations Center with acting quickly to prevent a tragedy at Benjamin Cardozo High School in New York City.

“Based on a quick response by the NYPD and FBI personnel, a student was arrested with a loaded firearm. The FBI will continue to work tirelessly to protect our children,” he added.

Under Mayor Eric Adams, the NYPD has stepped up its partnership with the federal government, coordinating efforts around everything from counterterrorism to deportation of illegal alien criminals. The Trump administration has gone so far as to privately offer Adams a job in the administration if he drops out of the mayoral race, giving former Gov. Andrew Cuomo more hope of defeating socialist frontrunner Zohran Mamdani.

“Huge thanks to the NYPD and @NewYorkFBI for teaming up yet again to protect our country,” Patel concluded.

A 16-year-old was arrested after threatening on Instagram to “shoot up” his Queens high school, leading to a brief lockdown as police searched his backpack and recovered the loaded handgun.

At a press conference, Mayor Adams praised the state-federal effort as a “perfect example of the system working.”

The teen is being charged with criminal possession of a weapon and making terroristic threats; he’s held without bail pending a psych eval.

New York has seen over 20 students arrested with firearms just in 2025, underscoring the urgency with which mental health evaluators are calling for systemic reforms. Educators are pushing the city to invest in more in-school mental health counselors amid a constrained budget.

Cardozo is one of New York City’s top-rated public high schools, with more than 1,800 students.

In stark contrast, an 18-year-old suspected of preparing to carry out a school shooting was released on bail Wednesday after authorities located him scouting the property of a Cape Cod high school. He was arrested on Sept. 11 and charged with threatening use of a deadly weapon in a public building.

No federal partnership occurred, according to media reports.

Ian Fotheringham posted $2,500 bail and is required to stay away from the school, wear a GPS monitoring device, and not leave his home.

Fotheringham was found in possession of a 3-D printer that police say is capable of making a “ghost gun,” which is untraceable. In addition, he possessed photographs of the Columbine High School shooting in 1999.