San Diego

Teen Arrested for Making Social Media Threats to Fallbrook HS

The school said the Snapchat account that posted the threat was created on Tuesday

Deputies announced the arrest of a Fallbrook High School student suspected of making a shooting threat toward the school on social media.

Extra uniformed San Diego County Sheriff's Department deputies were patrolling the campus Wednesday after investigators and school administrators first learned of the threat on Tuesday night.

The SDSO said the 14-year-old student posted a picture of a gun and made a school shooting threat on Snapchat.

The school said the Snapchat account that posted the threat was created on Tuesday.

Detectives and members of the Crime Suppression Team investigated the threat which led them to the student. The teen was arrested Wednesday afternoon and booked into Juvenile Hall.

No weapons were found at the student's house, the SDSO said. Investigators do not believe the student had any intention of carrying out the threat.

Crime Stoppers is offering up to $1,000 for information in the case. Anonymous tips can be made with Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.

Fallbrook High School has had threats made against the campus in the past, at least one leading to the arrest of three of their students in 2017. 

The campus was shut down after a photo showing a student posing with a gun inside a school bathroom made its rounds on social media. A loaded firearm was later found hidden in a classroom. 

This year, unfounded threats of explosives at Bonsall and Fallbrook high schools placed both campuses on lockdown for what turned out to be a case of "swatting," or falsely reporting an emergency to authorities, triggering a law enforcement presence. 

This week, a 14-year-old suspected of making online threats via social media to El Capitan High School in Lakeside was arrested. 

Extra patrols were also added this week at Scripps Ranch High School in the city of San Diego due to a rumor circulating on social media of a shooting at the school. That threat was linked to an out-of-state source.

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