Local

Bartlesville teen charged with making threats against school

BARTLESVILLE, Okla. — Bartlesville Police confirmed a 14-year-old boy has been arrested and charged for making a threat against Central Middle School on social media.

Bartlesville Police Public Information Office Andrew Ward said investigators were provided with additional information on the threat against Central Middle School Tuesday. Ward also confirmed the teenager has been charged with a terroristic hoax.

This comes after police stepped up patrols and investigated the rumors of threats.

Many parents in the community had been left feeling concerned for their children’s safety.

Jess Crane got a text from Bartlesville Public Schools warning her about rumored threats to her sons school.

”My kid’s my number one priority, you know, his safety is my number one,” Crane said. “When you hear that, it kind of freaks you out. You’re like, ‘oh God, what’s going on?’ and your heart, it just it drops.”

Police said they began investigating on Friday.

On Sunday, Bartlesville Public Schools sent out an email to parents letting them know there was an investigation.

Crane said she was really worried about her 11-year-old son, so kept him home on Monday.

“I was a little nervous, I was scared, not gonna lie. I wish I would have kept him home today [Tuesday]. [I’ve] just been checking my phone every hour, just in case he texts and, you know, they’re not allowed to have their phones on them during school,” she said.

Bartlesville PD Sgt. Chris Neal said they stepped up police presence at the school and also increased patrols at nearby schools.

“As a police department, the school officials, we all have to take every threat that’s verbalized or written … into account and we have to act on it,” Neal said.

On Tuesday afternoon, police then made the arrest.

“We just got some credible evidence that there was an actual threat made beforehand, there was a lot of rumors and everything like that,” Neal said.

Police said they’re not currently looking for anyone else suspected of these threats.

“At this point, we believe there was just one individual and he’s in custody, so at this point, we do not believe there’s anything to worry about,” they said.

Police said, originally, rumors started spreading on social media that weapons and a hit list were found, but they found this to be false.

Bartlesville Public Schools sent FOX23 the following statement:

“At this time, the district is not aware of any evidence regarding a gun, hit list, or similar rumors and speculations. While the district appreciates reports of valid concerns so that it can coordinate with the police department on protective measures, we also share the usual cautions against sharing rumors and speculation, as they may cause needless worry, impede investigations, and could cause unwarranted harm to personal reputations.”

The investigation is still on-going and they said during this, they will continue to have a police presence at Central Middle School and increased patrols around other schools in Bartlesville.

“The safety of our children the safety of our schools in our community is number one priority at Bartlesville Police Department and we’re going to do everything we can. We’re going to have people, we’re going to have boots on the ground, so to speak,” Neal said.



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