SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio police have arrested a juvenile accused of posting a photo of a firearm on social media, threatening violence toward local schools.
In a Facebook post from SAPD on Sunday, police say they arrested a 12-year-old male after they were made aware of a social media post circulating on various platforms. The post included the names of seven different local schools from San Antonio ISD, Edgewood ISD and an Idea Public School, dates and a weapon in the background.
During their investigation, SAPD Fusion detectives were able to confirm the identity and take him into custody without any problems. The juvenile faces seven counts of terroristic threats – serious bodily injury.
Officers confirmed the juvenile was found to have no weapons or means to carry out the threats but says they take all threats seriously.
Carolina, an Edgewood ISD parent, told KENS 5 two of her children are enrolled at one of the schools listed in the post.
"My friend actually sent me the screenshot of the post that was going around," she said. "I'm not going to lie, I kind of freaked out. My heart dropped. In my head, I'm like, 'I don't even want to send them to school.' As a parent, you want to always protect your children and when they are at school, you can't do that. When I saw that they arrested the individual, I felt relieved and a little bit safer to send my kids back on Monday. We can't take any threat lightly when it comes to children's safety."
The Edgewood parent posted a video of the increased law enforcement presence during drop-off on Monday.
Abel Peña is a retired FBI agent in San Antonio.
“The FBI found there are at least 6,000 school threats [in the U.S.] every year," Peña said. "So, that’s a great number of threats. They typically increase at the beginning and the end of the school year. Especially in light of the recent school shooting in Georgia, you're going to get a lot of copycats or young children typing to emulate that by making those types of threats."
According to Peña, bullying and attention-seeking can motivate this behavior.
"A lot of these kids are desensitized nowadays," he said. "There's no ramifications that they feel are a big deal. It's very important for parents to have that open conversation with kids. Children want their social media private, but at the same time, they need to understand it's important to come forward with information that's potentially threatening. If they hear one of their friends saying something, even if it's a veiled threat, it's important for those kids to tell their parents."
Police are also urging parents to be aware of their children’s social media activity.
A letter was sent to parents in San Antonio ISD. The statement said the threat was not credible but as a precaution the district is enhancing police presence around campuses this week.
Idea Mays Academy also wrote on social media about the investigation saying its campus is in a closed campus status. In this status, students must leave their backpacks at home.
Edgewood ISD police also confirmed there were no weapons at the suspect’s home, and officers affirm the threat is not credible. They said they take all potential threats seriously, and they will continue to take additional safety measures to ensure the safety and well-being of students and staff.