Threats against 2 schools investigated, 1 person arrested
MIAMI - One person was arrested Friday morning after an investigation into threats made to a southwest Miami-Dade middle school, according to Miami-Dade schools police.
An Instagram and WhatsApp user who goes by "ALEX837340" posted "Don't show up at school tmr I have a can of galaxy gas," according to schools police. Another post featured a handgun on a fabric background captioned "Don't go to school tmr llcms," according to the police.
The threats appeared to target Lamar Louise Curry Middle School, according to the school's principal Michele Bush.
Maria Ocampo said her daughter showed her screenshots of the threats.
"Immediately she just sent it to all her friends in the chat. I got very scared. As a matter of fact, I called the police myself and I contacted some of the moms after that," she said.
The school's principal sent a message to parents saying they were aware of the threatening posts and the school district's police department had been notified.
Early Friday morning, Miami-Dade schools police said detectives were able to identify and arrest the person who posted the threats concerning the middle school. They were taken to the Juvenile Assessment Center.
"I'm happy that he got caught, I mean, thank God he's not going to harm anybody," said Ocampo.
Lianet Bascerrechea said she was not entirely comfortable sending her daughter to school, even with an arrest.
"Not 100 % secure because the student can be connected to another student, or you never know, maybe somebody else has the idea of doing that," she said.
This was not the only school to deal with a threat.
Late Thursday evening, Nicole Nearor, the principal of Coconut Creek High School, sent a message to parents saying they were aware of "a potential threat to our school of an image made via social media. We immediately worked with law enforcement to safely handle the situation. As a precautionary measure, there are extra police and security personnel on our campus."
It is unclear who was behind the potential threat to the high school.
Parents are urged to speak with their children about school threats. Even if they are made as a joke there are serious consequences.
In Florida, a threat made against a school is a second-degree felony. Students also face school disciplinary measures, including expulsion.
