DADE CITY, Fla. — Police arrested a Pasco High School student on Tuesday for threatening violence against the school, according to Pasco County Schools.
"Your student’s safety is our top priority, and we want to assure you that we take every threat seriously. We also have been trained on the district’s active threat plan, and will continue to conduct drills to ensure we are as prepared as possible if the unthinkable were to happen at PHS," Pasco County School Safety posted on Facebook.
According to Pasco County Schools, many schools in the district are investigating similar threats and rumors, including Sand Pine Elementary, R. B. Stewart Middle School and Fivay High School.
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The following message was sent out to Sand Pine Elementary families:
"Hello, Sand Pine parents. This is Mrs. Twardosz calling to update you on the investigation into the threat scrawled on a white board. No suspect has been identified, but the sheriff’s office investigation continues. Schools throughout the nation are responding to rumors of threats, most based on social media posts or information heard on the news. At this time, we don’t believe there is a credible threat against our school, or against any Pasco County school. Nevertheless, the district continues to work with law enforcement to investigate every rumor and threat, and we will not let down our guard. The district crisis response plan is solid, and all schools continue to conduct active threat drills. In addition, the Florida Legislature appears to be serious about helping schools enhance security. If you would like to add your voice in support of their efforts, you can find local legislative delegation contact information in the side bar links at www.pascoschools.org/com. Thank you."
The following message was sent out to R. B. Stewart Middle School families:
"Hello Stewart families. This is Mrs. Davis calling to let you know that we canceled the pep rally today after students reported rumors of a possible shooting during the rally. Law enforcement is investigating these rumors, but because we still don’t have the source of the rumors, we thought it was best to cancel our plans. We take each tip seriously and we work through them all diligently. We have found that most of these rumors started from conversations and chat groups regarding news reports about other rumored threats across the country that are not directly related to any Pasco County school, and likely are not credible. If you or your student have information regarding a specific school threat, please contact authorities immediately. Please do not share rumors on social media, and discourage your children from doing so. Monitor what they are putting on social media and have conversations about current events. If you have any questions, please call us. Thank you."
The following message was sent out to Fivay High School families:
"We are aware of Fivay High School students discussing rumors of violence through social media.
Over night, several Pasco Sheriff's Office units conducted an investigation and found that the rumors started from a news report about other threats across the country and IS NOT related at all Fivay High School or any other Pasco County schools.
If you have information regarding any school threat, we continue to encourage individuals to contact 911 immediately."
