School bomb plot lands teen in prison

Saying he regretted plotting with his former girlfriend to attack classmates at Connetquot High School, a Bohemia teen Monday admitted in Suffolk County Court to trying to buy guns and bomb-making materials last year.

Christopher Franko, 18, was sentenced by County Court Judge Stephen Braslow to 3 to 9 years in prison after Franko pleaded guilty to second-degree conspiracy for planning the Columbine-style attack, which never was carried out.

It was the second time in five years that Franko pleaded guilty in a plot to attack the school.

"I made a mistake that was totally unacceptable," Franko said in court before Braslow pronounced sentence. "I know that I do not deserve the mercy of God."

In court, Franko admitted that he and his then-girlfriend, Dana Saltzman, then 16, made an unsuccessful attempt last Feb. 14 to buy a shotgun at a Commack sporting goods store, then unsuccessfully sought help from another person to buy guns.

Between Feb. 1 and April 30 last year, Franko said, he and Saltzman made repeated attempts on the Internet to learn how to build an explosive from materials such as propane, glass bottles and black powder.

Saltzman, who is awaiting trial, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree conspiracy.

Franko's mother, Nancy, who watched her son plead guilty, would not speak to a reporter. Franko's attorney, John Schick, would not comment.

In a statement in court before he was sentenced, Franko blamed his actions on abuse he said was inflicted on him by classmates at Connetquot High. But he said, "I don't blame them anymore."

He said he intends to receive his high school equivalency diploma while in prison and study college-level English courses. He said he has been studying the Bible.

Referring to his parents, Franko said, "I want them to be proud of me, and one day I hope they will be."

Franko had pleaded guilty in 2007 in Suffolk Family Court in connection with a plot to attack Connetquot High in June 2007. In that case, Franko served a year in juvenile detention.

Prosecutors on Monday said a successful attack on the school could have been catastrophic.

"We are fortunate that he was able to be interrupted by very diligent police work," Assistant District Attorney John Scott Prudenti said.

In court, Schick said Franko had been suicidal after his arrest last year, but has benefitted from treatment while incarcerated in Suffolk County jail.

"His state of mind is completely different," Schick said.

Braslow said accepting Franko's guilty plea was a "difficult decision" because of the nature of the charges against him.

"Thank God no one was injured here. No one was killed," Braslow said.