A South Portland high school student was arrested Thursday after fellow students told authorities he had been making threats on social media. Police say the student posted comments on Snapchat last night that included references to, quote, "shooting up the school."
Police say they located the 15-year-old as he was walking to school before classes started. They say he had a knife in his possession but no firearms. He was arrested on charges of terrorizing and carrying a concealed weapon. Lieutenant Frank Clark says the students who alerted authorities to the threats set a good example of vigilance.
“We're really thankful to those students that stepped up, did the right thing, brought that information to us, to allow us to better investigate it and look into the situation and take the right steps to make sure that hopefully they're safe and the school is safe.”
Police say the student, who was cooperative, is being charged as a juvenile and is now under house arrest. There is no indication any one else was involved with the threat.