A 14-year-old student has been arrested by Ocala police for allegedly making a threat on Snapchat to conduct a shooting at Howard Middle School.
According to the Ocala Police Department, the Snapchat threat was made on Saturday, January 20. Several days later, on Tuesday, January 23, students notified administrators and the OPD school resource officer at Howard Middle School (1655 NW 10th Street in Ocala) about the social media threat.
The Ocala Police Department immediately launched an investigation, which led to the arrest of the 14-year-old student on Thursday, February 1. The unidentified student now faces a felony charge of making written threats to kill or do bodily harm.
Parents and guardians of kids who use social media are encouraged by Ocala police to explain the seriousness of these kinds of social media threats.
“School safety is a top priority for our agency and we take threats like this very seriously,” stated the Ocala Police Department on its Facebook page. “If you ever come across a threat like this, especially towards a school, please call law enforcement immediately.”