Juvenile Relative of Uvalde Shooter Apprehended for School Threats

The mother of a 17-year-old cousin of the Uvalde school shooter called police on Monday, saying her son was attempting to get a pistol so he could “do the same thing” as the shooter.

Sgt. Washington Moscoso of the San Antonio Police Department claimed that on Monday morning, they arrested the suspect’s cousin, 17-year-old Nathan James Cruz, and charged him with threatening a public place and a family member.

An affidavit filed with Mr. Cruz’s arrest warrant states that his mother called the police after hearing disturbing comments such as “I’m going to shoot the school” and “school is starting soon.” The threats were considered severe enough by detectives to warrant an arrest.

According to the complaint, Mr. Cruz’s mother called the police after hearing from her son that he intended “to do the same thing” as his cousin Salvador Ramos. In 2022, Mr. Ramos, a native of Uvalde, shot and killed 19 pupils and 2 instructors at Robb Elementary School with an AR-15-style rifle.

Sergeant Moscoso said that the mother had phoned the police out of fear for her son’s safety. Mother and sibling of suspect reportedly gave taped testimonies to investigator at police headquarters.

Adding, “God knows what could have happened,” he said. She did the right thing, and now this person is in jail.

Investigators, he added, have determined that Mr. Cruz is related to Mr. Ramos, the victim of the shooting at Robb Elementary.

The arrest warrant states that Mr. Cruz’s mother told officers she was worried about him making threats since he was “intoxicated” and “they live near an elementary school.”

After being questioned by police, Mr. Cruz denied having made “any threats,” as stated in the warrant.

Mr. Cruz’s attorney was unavailable for comment on Monday.

This wasn’t the first time someone connected to the Uvalde shooter was taken into custody after the tragedy. According to a police report, Mr. Ramos’ mother, Adriana Martinez Reyes, was detained in January after she threatened to murder the guy with whom she was living in Oklahoma.

The shooting at Robb Elementary is still being investigated, with many investigations focusing on the 73-minute wait before police approached and killed Mr. Ramos at the school.

Victims’ loved ones have been actively demanding justice in the months after the shooting, with little attention paid to the alleged shooter. Alexandria Rubio, known as Lexi, was 10 years old when she was murdered in the incident, and her mother, Kimberly Mata-Rubio, announced last month that she was running for mayor.