LITTLEFIELD, Ariz. — A juvenile was arrested Tuesday after admitting to Mohave County Sheriff’s deputies a friend dared him to post on social media he was going to “shoot up the school.”
He also told them he had no intentions of committing the act, according to a news release from the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office.
The juvenile was arrested and booked into the Mohave County Juvenile Detention Facility for making a terrorist threat, a class 3 Felony, the news release said.
Although this threat appears to be an isolated incident, additional security measures and law enforcement presence were scheduled for area schools.
“The Mohave County Sheriff’s Office takes a zero-tolerance stance towards any person that makes a threat towards our schools or the disruption of an educational institution,” the news release said.
The following similar incidents have transpired in Southern Utah, but all turned out to be hoaxes or “swatting” incidents:
- On April 3, Snow Canyon Middle and Snow Canyon High were placed on secure (status) after the Washington County School District received an email from someone threatening to leave a bomb in a parking lot across the street from the high school. It turned out to be a hoax.
- On April 1, the Hurricane Police Department received two separate calls reporting there was an active shooter inside Hurricane High School. However, the school was largely empty with the exception of a handful of students and staff since it was a teacher prep day, and the threats were not credible.
- Snow Canyon High School was the target of swatting last September when a person called in a fake emergency to police. The individual was eventually identified as an out-of-state juvenile who was linked to an organized group that perpetrates swatting incidents across the county.