Midlands teen who made online threat to cause chaos taken into custody, sheriff says
A Midlands teenager was taken into custody after making a threat to the student’s school district on social media, the Newberry County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday.
The 15-year-old high school student’s online threat was shared numerous times, drawing the attention of administrators, school resource officers and law enforcement, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
All Newberry County schools were placed on alert, which the sheriff’s office said is designed to create a “heightened state of awareness that does not impede education or the movement of students,” without causing panic.
Extra law enforcement officers were put on patrol at the schools following the alert, according to the release.
When the teen was taken into custody at Newberry High School, the alert was lifted, the sheriff’s office said.
“All schools are back to normal operation,” it said in the release.
School officials and law enforcement said the teen did not want to physically harm anyone. The student’s goal with the threat was to cause chaos, according to the release.
The threat was made anonymously and no credible information was included, the sheriff’s office said.
Further information on the nature of the threat was not available.
The student is being held at the sheriff’s office until a decision is made on potential charges by the Department of Juvenile Justice, the sheriff’s office said.
There is no word if the student will be locked up, or released to a family member/guardian.
The student’s identity is not being made public because the teen is under the age of 18.
Information about any discipline the student faces from the high school, including possible expulsion, was not available.
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This story was originally published March 10, 2020 at 12:26 PM.
