Mo. man charged with plotting 'Twilight' mass shooting

Michael Winter, USA TODAY | USATODAY

A 20-year-old Missouri man was charged Friday with planning a mass shooting this weekend at either a screening of the latest Twilight movie or a local Walmart.

Blaec Lammers, of Bolivar, is accused of buying assault rifles and more than 400 rounds of ammunition in a plot mimicking the July mass shooting that killed 12 and wounded 57 at an Aurora, Colo., theater showing the premiere of the latest Batman movie, the Springfield News-Leader reports.

Lammers was charged with first-degree assault, making a terroristic threat and armed criminal action. He is being held on $500,000 bail.

His mother contacted police Thursday, saying Lammers had bought assault weapons and ammunition, and was concerned he "may have intentions of shooting people at the movie," The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn -- Part 2, according to court documents. He told police he had bought a ticket for a Sunday show.

He then stated he might instead target the Walmart Supercenter in Bolivar "because if he ran out of ammunition he would be able to break the glass where the ammunition is stored and get more, writes the News-Leader, published by Gannett, USA TODAY's parent.

Police Detective Dusty Ross, who interviewed Lammers, told the Bolivar Herald-Free Press, that Lammers said he planned to surrender after the shooting at the B&B Bolivar Cinema 5.

Daniel VanOrden, Circuit General Manager for B&B Theatres of Fulton, Mo., said in an e-mail to USA TODAY, "We appreciate the Bolivar Police Department for acting swiftly to avert any threat to the multiple potential targets, thus making this a non-incident." He did say whether any, or additional, security was planned for Twilight screenings.

Walmart has not released a statement.

According to the police affidavit, signed by Ross, Lammers said he had bought two assault rifles for hunting. When asked about "recent shootings in the news," he "stated that he had a lot in common with the people. .. [He] stated he was quiet, kind of a loner, had recently purchased firearms and didn't tell anybody about it, and had homicidal thoughts," according to a probable-cause statement.

Lammers said he bought the guns Monday and Tuesday -- police did not say where -- and went to nearby Aldrich on Tuesday to practice shooting. According to the police affidavit, he said he had never fired a gun before and "wanted to make sure he knew how they functioned." He also said he was currently not taking his medication, which was not specified.

Ross said he does not believe anyone else was involved in the alleged plot.

"I think it would have been something he would have done solely on his own," Ross told the Herald-Free Press. "You'll come across people who will make threats toward people and events but they don't actually take the substantial steps that he took in planning it out."

The affidavit also stated that in 2009, Lammers "claimed he wanted to fatally stab a Walmart employee and followed the employee around the store before he was contacted by officers." KCTV5 says he was "not convicted in state court" but does not say whether he was charged.