Cousin of Uvalde school gunman Salvador Ramos arrested on suspicion of planning similar attack, court records say

The cousin of the teenager responsible for the deadly primary school shooting in Uvalde, Texas has been arrested after his family tipped off police that he was planning a similar attack. 

Court documents show the mother of the 17-year-old had called police to tell them he was trying to buy a gun, and “do the same thing” at a local school. He had also allegedly threatened to shoot his sister.

The teenager has been charged with making threats to a public place and a family member, according to court records. He’s being held in custody in Bexar County jail.

The teenager is the cousin of Salvador Ramos, the 18-year-old behind one of the deadliest classroom attacks in the US when he murdered 19 students and two teachers during a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School last May.

Nearly 400 police rushed to the site, but waited more than an hour before confronting the attacker. The response was later criticised in a report which highlighted a lack of leadership and urgency, calling the approach “lackadaisical”.

The school also faced criticism over its security measures.

Click to subscribe to the Sky News Daily wherever you get your podcasts

Texas Governor Greg Abbott waved off calls for tougher gun laws, despite mass shootings at a Sutherland Springs church in 2017 and an El Paso Walmart in 2018.

More than a year since the killings, the state criminal investigation into the police response remains ongoing.