Midlands teen arrested after allegedly threatening schools on social media

A teen in Sumter County has been arrested and is accused of making threats toward a school.

The Sumter County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest on Wednesday. The 13-year-old suspect, whose name was withheld because of their age, has been charged with threatening schools and making unlawful communications.

The sheriff’s office said in a release that, at about 7 p.m. on Jan. 25, deputies and an agent with the FBI detained the 13-year-old suspect for “making threats to a local school through social media.”

The child’s case has been petitioned to the family court system.

Sumter Sheriff Anthony Dennis emphasized in a release that anyone “making a threat towards our schools and children will be dealt with to the full extent of the law.”

Chris Trainor

The State

Chris Trainor is a retail reporter for The State and has been working for newspapers in South Carolina for more than 21 years, including previous stops at the (Greenwood) Index-Journal and the (Columbia) Free Times. He is the winner of a host of South Carolina Press Association awards, including honors in column writing, government beat reporting, profile writing, food writing, business beat reporting, election coverage, social media and more.