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Polk County Sheriff's Office
Police say Blaec Lammers, 20, was plotting a shooting spree this weekend at a movie theater screening of the new "Twilight" film in Missouri.
Updated at 9:04 p.m. ET: Authorities in Bolivar, Mo., have charged a man they say was planning to go on a shooting spree this weekend at a movie theater screening of the new "Twilight" film.
The 20-year-old suspect, Blaec Lammers, was charged Friday morning with making a terroristic threat, armed criminal action and first-degree assault, The Springfield News-Leader reported.
The alleged plot draws parallels to the July movie theater massacre in Aurora, Colo., where suspect James Holmes is accused of killing 12 people and wounding 58 others during a midnight showing of "The Dark Knight Rises."
The Bolivar Police Department said Lammers' mother called authorities Thursday with concerns that her son had bought weapons similar to those in the Aurora massacre and that he might be planning a movie theater shooting, the News-Leader reported.
Police then interviewed Lammers, who reportedly said he purchased two assault rifles for hunting and that he had also bought 400 rounds of ammunition, the newspaper added.
A probable cause statement prepared by the Bolivar Police Department stated that Lammers had also purchased tickets to see the new "Twilight" movie and was planning to shoot people at the theater, the Bolivar Herald-Free Press reported.
The police statement added that Lammers thought he might run out of ammunition, so he decided to instead shoot people at a Walmart store in Bolivar.
A town of around 10,000 people, Bolivar is about 130 miles southeast of Kansas City, according to The Associated Press.
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Bolivar Police Department Detective Dusty Ross told the Herald-Free Press the he doesn't believe anyone else was involved in the plot, but that "(Lammers) had taken every step he needed to take except for actually committing the act."
"Everything is taken care of," Bolivar City Administrator Darin Chappell told the newspaper. "There's no need to be alarmed."
Police say Lammers was familiar with high profile shootings in the news and allegedly planned something similar in 2009, the Herald-Free Press reported.
"Thankfully we had a responsible family member or we might have had a different outcome," Bolivar Police Chief Steve Hamilton told the AP. He said Lammers is under a doctor's care for mental illness, and court documents said he was "off of his medication," the AP reported.
Authorities are still investigating the case, while Lammers remains in jail on a $500,000 bond, according to the Herald-Free Press.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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Leave a Comment:
Thank you Mom!
God bless that wonderful mother and the authorities that responded, the question is why was a mental patient allowed to purchase firearms?
Glad Mom had the heart to do this. Security companies like Immediate Response Group and others have a place in these matters, but close friends and family are the best defense against these situations.
Seriously our country is so screwed on so many levels-for figgin sake you cant go to the movies anymore
Sarah, If you can find a non-violent, safe place (anywhere in the world) to live, let me know. Other than fantasy land, I mean.
And Charlie, you probably wouldn't know a Nazi if you tripped over one. Here's a hint: They've joined forces with the lowdown-good-for-nothing Klan and the IQ of both groups have dropped because of it. They know better to kill a whole bunch of people at once because we'd come for them.
Charlie Red banned, failed audition.
4 deleted, Elite Troll 'contributing':
Also banned, failed audition. Grim.
Under 3, model railroad man wished a particularly gruesome death on Charlie Red. Don't do that again.
You're suspended for a week for violating #1 of the Code of Honor.
Charlie- Yes, he may have been "within his Constitutional rights" to do what he did..so far. BUT, tell us this when you or God forbid, a loved one are in a theater and gets shot.
THANK YOU TO HIS MOTHER!!!
Hey Charlie are you a shill for the anti-gun lobby? When I hear jacka***s like you speak I think we should not only ban guns but kitchen knives. I wouldn't want someone like to out in public with either.
or we could just lock you up.
I always found the semantic of "spree" highly ironic in this context. Like a shopping spree, the merry frolic spree to the picnic, spree candy, And now it is always spree killers, shooting sprees and worse. What, are they singing like Julie Andrews in Sound of @!$%#ing Music when they are blasting everyone in sight like in Oliver Stone Natural Born Killers?
Obviously you don't understand the definition of spree.
Spree /n/: a spell or sustained period of unrestrained activity of a particular kind
Hence the saying, a crime spree.
Enjoy your imprisonment, pizza face!
luckily his new roomies bubba and tyrone wont be looking at his face.
I seriously fail to understand what is accomplished by this, or what this person is thinking. It's so sad that we have to worry about this.
Easy, James Holmes has become a role model figure to crazies like this one...I'm sure he would have tried to plead temporary insanity as well.
@Amy m-76####
There is no reason to worry about this, you are far more likely to die in a car crash than to be killed in a shooting spree. But, I can understand it, you don't hear about every time someone dies in a car crash, it isn't interesting enough for the media to cover, and it isn't frightening enough to secure ratings.
It's psychosis. We won't know what actual form of psychosis it is until trial (if even then). Knowing the particular illness would explain a lot more as we'd be able to get down to what his symptoms are and get a better understanding of his frame of mind while he was plotting this (if he really was plotting something).
IMHO. this kid is living in a fantasy world where it is ok to shoot people in a movie theater. Was he doing this just so he could say he wanted to know how it felt to kill someone. I'm no psychiatrist, but this kid needs some serious help.
haven't seen any of the movies in this series. I see that a lot of freinds have and really like them. But what is making Idiots want to kill because of them?? I can understand someone going Postal because of our inept Government. But not some stupid movie. May have to see one maybe there are subliminal messages.. Already have one of those so called assult weapons and plenty of ammo. That has never given me the urge to kill anyone. Must be abnormal!!
I think he chose the movie because there would be a lot of people sitting down in a dark room with loud sound, focused on the story, and not on what was coming in the exit door. The light would be shining on the would-be victims, and would be sitting ducks for his bullets.
I suspect the draw was the crowds, not the movie itself.
He saw the coverage the idiot in CO got and wanted the same kind of attention. He'll end up as severely mentally ill as Holmes is, except that his mother paid attention to her son and was able to get the police involved before anyone was killed.
Killing people going to see Twilight would have been more tragic because they paid money to see that garbage.
It sounds like he was mentally ill to begin with. Thank God for his mother!
Read further. He didn't have enough money to take on the Twihards so he settled on Walmart.
Jaime-He did not take on the theater because he was worried that he would run out of the 400 bullets that he had. So he decided to take out people in the Walmart that way if he ran out of bullets he could break the glass in the sporting good section and keep firing till the police came. This guy is a nut!
Many thanks to Lammer's mother. She did the right thing and it must have been difficult for her. Worse yet, when this yobbo gets out, he'll probably hunt her down.
I hope the town takes up a collection so she can get the hell out of Dodge and he can't find her, 'cause he's nuts - and mean.
"...the right of the People, to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
When attending a big-time movie premiere on opening night, better bring the essentials: Ticket...popcorn...AK-47.
Hey Blaec - just save yourself a lot of time and money next time. Just buy one round, put it in the chamber and blow your own friggin brains out! Moron.
Lord have mercy....it all ready cost to much to go to the movies. Now I have to worry about getting shot.
wow. I guess that why I decided not to go to the first showing of Flight. Maybe I should just buy a 73" TV and upgrade my surround sound system. Atleast can hear the lunatic come through the first two doors before I get shot at. He just ruined his life now he will really want to commit a foolish crime.
Here we go again. Liberals......hop on the wagon with the burning constitution! You'll have this fella out so you can "help" him, in two years......with Obamacare on our dime......which is now worth a penny......and he will kill someone by beating them to death with his shoe because your "feel-good" sing-a-long therapy session didn't take. You will then outlaw shoes next......and only outlaws will wear shoes.
Iknowthis...etc, meet Charlie. Charlie, Iknowthis...etc.
Knuckleheads
Time to tune the tin foil hat to another station.
I know this. LOL, we are almost there on banning shoes. The United States is so paranoid, you have to check your shoes when using the airport. Your underwear is also checked. If the United States would have done Afghanistan properly, we would not have to worry about it any longer. We should have totally wiped Afghanistan off of the map. That would have taken approximately one day. The United States allows people of this nature to live, how else would Haliburton and the chickenhawk warmongers in the Republican Party make there money?
I am so grateful to his mother, and so sorry for her, that his behaviors and choices had come to this.
"Police then interviewed Lammers, who reportedly said he purchased two assault rifles for hunting and that he had also bought 400 rounds of ammunition, the newspaper added."
Two assault rifles? Anti-gun propaganda much? I am pretty sure that you can't get one with it being illegal unless a Class 3 permit which I know he doesn't have.
"So we are arresting people in america who do nothing wrong? Did he legally acquire the weapons? Yes. Did he write about killing people? Yes."
No problem there, right?
"... HIS MOTHER along with the US GOVERNMENT spied on him, wire tapped him, investigated him with no cause other than he is collecting weapons and speaking his mind."
Yep, no cause at all. Move along...
"Welcome to Nazi America and I'm the only person who has a problem with it."
You and others who share your attitudes are ruining this country. Please leave.
Perhaps his mother wouldn't have noticed or spied as you say, if he wasn't living at home to begin with.
Charlie Red: How very noble and open minded of you! I'm sure that if you sent your name and address to the police department in that town that they be glad to give it to the would be terrorist murderer so that he could come and visit you.
Pot smokin, cig smokin, & drunkin bi polar nut case - do an analysis of these manic depressive bastards.
Damn kids and their bath salts!
Finally a mother who didn't take the denial pill. It's hard to ignore gun packages from UPS, and ammunition stockpiling being delivered to your front door. She probably didn't have to pay any special attention to know he was planning a mass shooting. Now mama doesn't have to hide with Laughner's parents, James Egan's parents and school psychologist, Seung-Hui Cho's parents, or Harris' and Klebold's parents for Columbine.
Nice to see at least one family member didn't fail to see that psychosis + rage + guns was going to turn out bad if left unreported to police.
You people talking about gasoline & burning people because you don't agree are the ones who need to join this man in a permanent metal ward.
The media needs to quit glorifying the monsters in the news & feeding ideas to the mentally ill/insane since the so call governmental health system which deem such people as safe in society as long their on medication & yet the patients have the right to deny medication until they kill people. As so goes a society where criminals have more rights then victims or children. If people are unable to be responsible for their own actions & choices then should be at least lock up in a controlled environment.
I am glad they were able to end it before he began. Kudos for Mom for doing the right think even if it was a hard.
Small world. I grew up there it's a small town of about 12K. It's a real tight community and a great place to grow up and raise a family. I have friends and family who still live there. I just want to say thank you, to my home town's police department, for a job well done.
Thank goodness for this mother who was courageous in calling the police about her son; many mother's would not do that and then after the horrible act is committed would say that couldn't be my son; he is a good boy.
Put this nut job in a secure facility forever.