TEMECULA: Clown fears and bomb threats force closure of high school

TEMECULA – A teenager was arrested Oct. 7, after he allegedly posted several threats specifically targeting Chaparral High School on social media.

Deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Temecula Police Station were contacted Oct. 6. just after 10:00 p.m. regarding an initially vague threat of violence posted on a social media website that would occur at Chaparral High School.

The first Tweet mentioned Chaparral High School with the phrase, “CLOWN MASKS, TEC-9, C4 PLANTED.”  A TEC-9 is a type of semi-automatic weapon, and C4 is a type of explosive.

A second Tweet posted shortly after 8 a.m. alleged that a Columbine-style attack would take place at the school at 10 a.m. The message said, “Good luck surviving the new Columbine.”

The second threat of violence was posted from the same social media website Oct. 7.

By the time the second threat was made, officials from Temecula PD had already been on the case all night long. “The Temecula Police Department…immediately began an investigation,” Riverside County Sheriff’s Public Information Officer Deputy Mike Vasquez said. “The investigation continued throughout the night.”

“We are continuing our efforts to uncover who this person is and arresting them,” Vasquez said in a phone interview with Valley News. “We are doing our best to follow-up, it does take time, but we are working to bring that person to justice,”

“We take threats like this very serious,” Chief Jeff Kubel said. “We will be conducting a thorough investigation to ensure the person(s) responsible are identified and prosecuted criminally.”

TVUSD explains their actions while some question response to threats, others never believed threat was real

In a series of Tweets and announcements from TVUSD, school district officials explained how the situation escalated to the level it did so quickly. Officials also addressed parent’s concerns about why they had not issued an earlier warning regarding the threats against the school.

In one of the first Tweets, posted Oct 7 at 7:31 a.m., officials cited the ongoing clown scare pranks occurring in the Inland Empire and across the nation as part of the cause for what some claimed or felt was a slow response to the threats by the district. One of the recent pranks that left local parents rattled was caught on a security surveillance camera in front of nearby Vail Ranch Middle School.

On Oct. 5 TVUSD had to address an issue involving an individual dressed in a clown outfit holding a fake knife who was videotaped in front the middle school. That person was identified and there are both law enforcement and school district investigations into the incident.

In that first Tweeted message TVUSD officials wrote, “At this time, we do not have any information to determine the credibility of the threat but can tell you that today, Friday, has been widely associated with the clown hoax rumors that have been ongoing this week.”

TVUSD officials continued in that Tweet, “Late last evening, Chaparral High School administration became aware of a threat posted on social media against CHS. Police were immediately involved and an investigation continued throughout the evening.”

“We didn’t notify families prior to this morning to allow police and staff the time to pursue the investigation last evening,” officials explained. “We were hopeful that leads would have resulted from contacts and that we would not have to create a panic.”

“Unfortunately, social media often spreads faster than the investigation can compete with,” TVUSD officials said, “As such, this morning…we felt it was necessary to advise CHS families of the threat.”

Officials continued, “We understand this can be alarming and want you to know that your student’s safety is our paramount priority and concern.”

“Please know that we always engage with law enforcement and intelligence sources to determine levels of threat based on the information we receive. There are a number of factors that determine credibility that law enforcement examines,” TVUSD explained in the Tweet. “This process takes some time and as of last evening, an investigation was ongoing and the threat was not at a credible level based on all of the information we had at the time.”

However, about 30 minutes after TVUSD officials released that first Tweeted statement, a second of several additional threata apparently came to light. That threat became more specific and said, “something will occur at 10 a.m.”

At 8:20 a.m., officials updated, “We are aware that a new threat has been posted within the last 15 minutes stating that something will occur at 10:00 a.m.”

“Almost immediately after sending the second advisory to parents, two new tweets with more specific details and threat information were sent with a time certain action of harm to the campus at 10:00 a.m.,” TVUSD explained. One of the Tweet reportedly said, “Good luck surviving the new Columbine.”

At that point, with fears escalating, officials decided to allow parents to begin picking up their children from the school if they desired to.

“Due to the disruption of this morning’s social media threat continuing with an instructional day is not an option,” the release read. “As a result, we have developed a reunification/release plan that we need parents to assist us with.”

“Knowing the high level of anxiety and fear these new tweets caused and in response to concerns from students and parents, staff immediately implemented a process to release students upon parent request.”

A 10:55 a.m. TWEET issued by TVUSD officials expressed relief that the 10 a.m. time frame for the bomb threat had passed without incident.

“Thankfully, the social media threat received this morning regarding a 10:00 a.m. incident has passed without incident,” the release read. However, by that time many students had already been picked up by parents at the school due to the threat made on Twitter the previous night.`

By noon the time the majority of the students had been picked up and the remaining students were relocated to the gym. A school official stated less than 100 students were still on campus. Those remaining students participated in lunch and there were only about 50 students remaining on campus by the school’s regular dismissal time of 2:30 p.m.

School deemed safe, alleged suspect identified, arrested

As a precautionary measure, the Riverside Sheriff’s Department Bomb Squad was brought in, along with bomb sniffing dogs and deputies to conduct a thorough search of the campus. No credible threats were located on the school campus and officials deemed the school safe.

“There were no weapons or explosive devices involved and the investigation is still ongoing at this time,” Vasquez said. “The Temecula Police Department is committed to the safety of its citizens and appreciates the public’s assistance when reporting suspicious activity or threats of violence.”

As their investigation continued, officials identified and located a suspect believed to have made the threats. Investigators subsequently arrested a 15-year-old student for posting the threats. The juvenile was booked into juvenile hall for criminal terrorist and bomb threats.

Due to the juvenile’s age, the person was not identified.

“As always we are unable to share any information regarding the identity of the individual arrested. This continues to be a police matter,” TVUSD officials explained.

“While we know today was extremely upsetting to our students, staff, and families, we want to assure you that our main priority at all times is the safety of our students and staff,” school district staff wrote.

TVUSD officials said the district and CHS staff will immediately debrief with all agencies and people involved and develop an after incident action plan to help them improve their responses during different times of crisis.

“A critical component of our debrief efforts involves our entire school community. We are conferring with the police department to schedule a future parent/student/staff/community town hall to address action plans and dialogue about these events, how we can address them as a community, and also the impact of social media,” TVUSD officials explained.

A date for the meeting will be determined within the next month, according to TVUSD officials.

In one of their final tweets regarding the matter, TVUSD officials wrote, “We also want to thank the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department for their support and assistance. They pulled together resources and additional agencies to ensure our campus was safe and supported.”

Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to contact officials at the Temecula sheriff’s station at (951) 696-3000. Callers can refer to incident file number TE162800263 and can remain anonymous. Citizens may also submit a tip using the Sheriff’s CrimeTips online form.

 

Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg in an off-duty accident.

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including the Robert Presley Detention Center, the Southwest Station in Temecula, the Hemet Station, and the Lake Elsinore Station, along with many other locations.