US police 'foil high school plot'

Police says the 15-year-old tried to buy an Uzi over the internet

Two teenagers in New York State have been charged with conspiring to attack their school, authorities say.

The boys, aged 15 and 17, were arrested after police found a diary and video threatening explosions and shootings at a high school in Bohemia, Long Island.

Officers later found the 15-year-old had tried several times to buy guns and explosive powder over the internet.

Police say a massacre, similar to that which took place in Columbine, Colorado in 1999, has been averted.

Chance discovery

The diary was discovered by chance and may have been dropped in a car park, police say.

In the diary and the video, which police described as "chilling", the younger boy made specific threats to kill students and staff at the high school from which he had been suspended.

The police commissioner said the video showed a "troubled" boy planning to use guns and explosives.

Officers said he had made several attempts to buy an Uzi and an AK47 on the internet, and an order for explosive powder had been placed.

They could not be sure whether any weapons had been successfully acquired.

He is said to have elicited the help of his older friend to carry out his plan.