Yesterday afternoon, law enforcement arrested a Bellview Middle School student, age 11, in connection with a Friday social media threat against Escambia County public schools.
The female student, whose name has not been released, was charged with written or electronic threats to conduct a mass shooting, a second-degree felony, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
- The arrest came after a joint investigation involving the ECSO, FBI and the Escambia County School District.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office posted on its Facebook page:
***Threats to Schools***
An arrest has been made in connection to an online threat made towards local schools on social media. The investigation identified an 11-year-old female middle school student who has been arrested and charged with written or electronic threats to conduct a mass shooting, a 2nd-degree felony. Sheriff Simmons wants the community to know that the “Safety of our students is a top priority.” The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office takes all threats seriously and would like to extend special thanks to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Escambia County School District for their assistance in the ongoing investigation, which may lead to additional arrests.
The School District issued this statement:
We have been informed that the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office has determined the source of this morning’s threatening post. We would like to thank Sheriff Simmons and the many deputies who were involved in the investigation and in the securing of our schools. We would also like to thank Chief Randall of the Pensacola Police Department and his officers for the additional support rendered today. Additionally, we would like to express our gratitude to our brave Campus Security Officers, who protect our schools each day.
We are grateful to our students and staff for remaining calm and professional during what was a stressful morning. To the parents who entrust us with their children every day, thank you, as well.
Be certain, we will use every tool at our disposal to be sure the person or persons responsible for today’s disruption never has the opportunity to do something like this again. We will work with our partners in law enforcement as they investigate further and we will pursue charges. We want to send the message that this behavior will not be tolerated in any of our schools. To those who seek to promote chaos by knowingly spreading harmful and disruptive disinformation, we will pursue you with every legal means available.
Lastly, the safety and well-being of our students, employees and community at-large is, and will remain, your school district’s number one priority. We will not waver.
