Facebook Threats get Teenager Arrested

A seventeen year-old male has been arrested for threats to commit a shooting at a local high school. The suspect, who made the remarks on the Facebook social networking site, faces a single felony charge of threatening to commit a crime resulting in serious injury. He is not being named because he is a juvenile.

Yesterday afternoon, the Sheriff's communications center received a call from a concerned parent of a student at El Camino High School. Information was that a student from the school had made comments that he would commit a shooting on campus the following morning. No specific people were mentioned as the intended target(s) of the shooting.

Sheriff's Department personnel worked very aggressively with staff members from the San Juan Unified School District. As a result, the author of the posting was quickly identified. Sheriff's deputies determined where the student/suspect was, and responded to his residence. Although no immediate means to carry out the threat were discovered, the student was taken into custody due to the potential of harm the following day to any student or staff member who was to be at the school.

Due to the suspect's arrest, it is not believed that any imminent threat exists to anyone attending this school this morning. Nonetheless, Sheriff's deputies will be present on campus as part of the ongoing contractual relationship for a Safe Schools program between the Sheriff's Department and the San Juan Unified School District.

Anyone having further information about this incident is asked to contact the Sheriff's Department at (916) 874-5115.