RICHMOND, Va. -- Multiple Crime Insider sources have reached out to CBS 6 raising red flags about what was said at a news conference about an alleged mass shooting plot.
Richmond's Police chief said the threat, allegedly planned for the Fourth of July, was foiled by investigators after they received a tip from a "hero tipster."
Mayor Levar Stoney admitted on Friday that he didn't know about the alleged threat until hours after it was supposed to happen.
Mayor Stoney first appeared with RPD Chief Gerald Smith at a news conference on Wednesday in which they said two suspects had been arrested for planning to attack the Fourth of July celebration at Dogwood Dell.
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Smith said that his officers, who were working off a tip, went to a house in the 3100 block of Columbia Street on July 1 and seized rifles, handguns and ammunition.
Julio Alvarado Dubon was taken into custody that night.
However, multiple sources told Jon Burkett that the man who was alleged to have made the actual threat, 38-year-old Rolman Balcarcel, was left inside the Southside home.
A search warrant affidavit obtained by CBS 6 states that officers encountered Balcarcel during their search and he showed them two different Colorado driver's licenses.
Balcarcel was arrested by state police in the Charlottesville area on Tuesday morning.
He and Dubon are both now charged with possession of a firearm by a non-U.S.-citizen, but nothing related to plotting a mass shooting.
Todd Stone, a legal expert for CBS 6, explained why Dubon was initially granted bond by a judge, while the Commonwealth would later appeal that decision to a higher court.
"If someone's making a marginal credible threat about a mass shooting, that's something a prosecutor should jump all over at a bond hearing in front of a judge, saying, look, you have to hold this person in jail because they're a threat to the public. If you don't hear that evidence, it begs the question, what evidence do they really have?" Stone explained.
Crime Insider sources told Jon Burkett that Richmond Police Officers who worked on the Fourth of July, including officers stationed at the Dogwood Dell event, were unaware of the mass shooting developments, adding information of a possible plot wasn't shared with surrounding counties.
As of Friday night, Dubon is in the Richmond Jail. Balcarcel was being held in Albemarle County, but online records show that he is now in the custody of another law enforcement agency.
Dubon is scheduled to appear at a bond appeal hearing on Monday morning.
Depend on CBS 6 News and WTVR.com for in-depth coverage of this important local story. Anyone with more information can email newstips@wtvr.com to send a tip.
