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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Freeman High shooter alluded to bomb making, new court docs show

FILE _ Caleb Sharpe, then 15, walks into Spokane County Juvenile Court to a packed courtroom on Wednesday, Sept.27, 2017. Sharpe is charged with taking guns to school on Sept. 13 and fatally shooting 15-year-old Sam Strahan and injuring three other girls. Superior Court Judge Michael Price ruled Monday that all statements Sharpe gave sheriff’s detectives can be used at trial. (Kathy Plonka / The Spokesman-Review)

Accused Freeman High School shooter Caleb Sharpe often messaged friends and classmates about acquiring material for bombs, according to court documents.

Detectives interviewed dozens of Sharpe’s friends and classmates, a handful of whom said Sharpe either talked about bombs or bomb materials.

Sharpe asked one friend to get him foil, fuse and gasoline. He told that same friend that documentaries of school shootings “cleansed him.”

He asked another friend to get him balls with holes in them.

A juvenile who described herself as a former girlfriend of Sharpe’s said he asked her to help him make bombs, but she declined because she thought Sharpe was serious about making them, the documents read.

One student, who said he was Sharpe’s best friend, said a week before the school shooting Sharpe asked if he would get some things for “gardening,” including sulfur. Sharpe told him the items were illegal if put together.

Another friend of Sharpe’s said he bragged about making improvised explosive devices using chemicals and white gasoline.

A Snapchat conversation between a friend of Sharpe’s, who said Sharpe talked about ISIS and 9-11, showed that Sharpe thought he “needed to do something to prove” himself, but that Sharpe asked one friend asking him to”foil, fuse and gasoline.”

Police investigators say Sharpe shot and killed one Freeman High School student and wounded three others on the morning of Sept. 13. He faces charges of first-degree murder, assault and other charges. He will stand trial in April 2018 to determine if he is to be tried as an adult.