Police say that a 16-year-old admitted to making a threat against Michigan schools days after a mass shooting at Oxford High School in Oxford Township, a Detroit suburb.
Michigan State Police said that on Thursday, they were dispatched to Armada High School following a threat made on Snapchat stating that Armada Area Schools would be "next" following the Oxford shooting.
Police said they were investigating the threat, and on Friday morning noted that they had interviewed a suspect.
"During an interview the suspect stated that he saw all the other areas schools were closed due to threats and he just wanted a day off of school. We have no indication that this was a credible threat and he had no plan to carry out any threat," Michigan State Police wrote on Twitter.
Police said that the suspect is a 16-year-old from the village of Armada. He has been released to his mother's custody, and police added that an "investigators report is being forwarded to the Macomb County Prosecutor for review."
"We want to remind parents and students that regardless of the reason, making a false threat of terrorism is a felony and could result in 20 years imprisonment," the state police stated.
Reached for details about the incident, Michigan State Police directed Newsweek to their public social media statements.
In a letter to families posted on Facebook Friday, Armada Area Schools Superintendent Michael Musary said state police had identified "one of our high school students, who acted alone, as the individual that posted the social media threat."
"The student communicated to [Michigan State Police] that the social media post was meant as a joke, hoping for a day off of school," Musary wrote.
The superintendent said that classes would resume on Monday.
"This is no joking matter as this student is currently banned from campus and facing serious district and legal consequences and has been referred to the Macomb County Prosecutor's Office," he added.
Dozens of schools, school districts and campuses in the Detroit area canceled classes Thursday after threats circulated on social media in the wake of the shooting at Oxford High School, which killed four students and injured several others.
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said Thursday that that at least 60 Michigan schools had been forced to temporarily close in response to threats.
He noted that at least 100 instances of direct threats or threatening social media posts were reported throughout the state.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Xander Landen is a Newsweek weekend reporter. His focus is often U.S. politics, but he frequently covers other issues including ... Read more
