Girl held in social media threat to shoot up Fresno schools

Fresno police arrested a girl Monday evening who is suspected of posting social media threats to shoot up local schools, including Fresno High School.

Fresno Unified officials said they became aware of the social media threats late Monday and immediately contacted Fresno police.

One of the threats, which was posted to Facebook, said “Ima go shoot up high schools first stop Fresno high.”

“The Fresno Police Department investigated the matter, determined the threat to not be credible, and arrested a suspect in connection with making the social media post,” said Jedidiah Chernabaeff, Fresno Unified spokesman. “Buses, classes and after-school activities will continue as normal on Tuesday.”

Another district spokesman, Miguel Arias, said the Police Department determined there was no need for additional security on school campuses. He said Fresno Unified was planning to send a phone message to parents Monday night about the threat investigation.

Fresno police Lt. Joe Gomez said the girl was a freshman, but he did not know from which high school. He said investigators determined the girl acted alone. She was booked at Fresno County Juvenile Justice Center.

Chernabaeff said the district hopes parents use this as a teaching moment. “We are encouraging parents and guardians to take this incident as an opportunity to speak with their children about the consequences and responsibilities of using social media.”

He added that Fresno Unified Superintendent Michael Hanson and Police Chief Jerry Dyer would partner on a public service announcement to reinforce the appropriate use of social media and the consequences of making threatening statements on social media. “Making threatening statements via social media is considered a criminal offense. The Fresno Unified School District takes this incident very seriously. The safety and security of our students and our staff is our top priority,” Chernabaeff added.

No other information was immediately available.

This story was originally published September 26, 2016 at 11:22 PM with the headline "Girl held in social media threat to shoot up Fresno schools."