An Elk River juvenile was taken into custody Thursday night after allegedly posting social media threats of violence toward Lakeville South High School and McGuire Middle School in Lakeville, authorities said.
After multiple reports of the threats on an internal school reporting system, police and school officials began investigating and quickly came up with a suspect, according to a joint press release from the Lakeville Area Schools and the Lakeville Police Department.
The youth was taken into custody at his Elk River home shortly before 9 p.m. and booked into the Dakota County Juvenile Services Center, where he was being held on suspicion of threats of violence.
“The longstanding partnership that’s in place between our agency and Lakeville Area Schools allowed for a swift and diligent response to this threat,” said Lakeville Police Chief Brad Paulson. “Any type of threat to those in our educational settings will be taken seriously, investigated thoroughly and we will do everything in our reach to hold those responsible fully accountable.”
Superintendent Michael Baumann thanked the students who used the district’s anonymous system to report the threats.
“Because of their report we were able to quickly take action,” Baumann said. “As always, if you see something, say something, do something. We appreciate our community’s partnership in keeping our schools safe.”
The threatening comment about the two schools was made on a Lakeville South High School class of 2030 Snapchat group, according to a message sent to parents on Thursday night.
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Baumann said those who reported the threats “did the right thing” and that there was no active threat to school safety.
Even so, he wrote, any threat of violence can spawn fear and concern and students should reach out to their school principals or counselors for support.
On Friday morning, Baumann sent a follow-up message saying authorities had spoken to the suspect and determined there was “no credible threat.”
He encouraged parents to tell children to continue reporting any safety concerns, even if they aren’t sure it’s a valid concern.
“It is not our students’ job to determine the validity of a concern before they report,” Baumann wrote. “Safety concerns should be reported so that Lakeville Area Schools staff can investigate and determine the validity.”
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