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Social media threat found not credible

Snapchat post at West Marshall raises concerns, prompts police investigation

State Center Police Chief Jeff Bunn and West Marshall Schools Superintendent Jacy Large said there was no credible threat after a potentially threatening message was posted by a student on social media Thursday evening. On Friday, Bunn was present at the school to help calm worries that students and parents may have had following the incident.

STATE CENTER — An investigation into a potentially threatening message by a West Marshall High School student on the social media app Snapchat has been found not credible.

“He’s not in school today,” West Marshall Superintendent Jacy Large said on Friday of the student who posted the message on Snapchat late Thursday.

He said the message included lyrics from the song “Ready, Aim, Fire,” by Imagine Dragons, along with a location stamp showing the post was made at the high school.

“(The student) went ahead and copied the song lyrics from Imagine Dragons, posted it, took a screenshot of inside of the school … he then said ‘perfect song lyrics,” Large said. “He then just went ahead and posted (the message) on his private wall, but he’s also friends with about 85-some kids, so when they saw that, that’s what triggered the message going on Facebook.”

State Center Police Chief Jeff Bunn said an investigation into the home of the student Thursday evening turned up no further documents or notes of a threatening nature, and it was determined that there was no threat to students.

“We do not believe there is an immediate threat to students,” he said Friday, adding there was an extra police presence at the school after the incident to calm parents and students who may have been worried by the message. “We investigated the threat and determined, through the (Marshall) County Attorney’s office, that there was not a criminal violation.”

Bunn said a concerned young person who had seen the message on social media contacted the police. That call eventually led to police searching the house of the student who posted the message.

The State Center Police Department’s full statement on the situation can be found on the department’s Facebook page. In the statement, those with questions or concerns are encouraged to contact Bunn at (641) 751-6351.

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Contact Adam Sodders at (641) 753-6611 or asodders@timesrepublican.com

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