RIVERSIDE — A 15-year-old boy suspected of making criminal threats against Arlington High School in Riverside, which were posted on social media, was taken into custody, police said Wednesday.
Officers responded to the school on Tuesday regarding an investigation of a school threat involving its principal, according to the Riverside Police Department.
The department initiated a “School Threat Assessment and Response” protocol to prevent additional threats of violence involving the high school, a standardized investigative procedure used by Riverside County law enforcement agencies.”
“The Riverside Police School Resource Officer assigned to Arlington High School was contacted and able to identify a 15-year-old male student as the source of the threatening social media post. With assistance from other SRO’s, the student was later detained,” police said in a statement.
The teen’s residence was searched by investigators, who determined that he did not possess any weapons. He was booked into a Riverside County juvenile detention facility on suspicion of making criminal threats.
Anyone with additional information regarding the criminal threat was urged to contact School Resource Officer Mike Cupido at MCupido@RiversideCA.gov or 951-353-7948. Tipsters who prefer to remain anonymous can download the Riverside Police Department “Atlas 1” mobile app and use the “send a message” feature.
“Many of our S.T.A.R. Protocol investigations into school violence threats begin with social media posts, where the youth involved later claim they were only joking,” Riverside Police Department Chief Larry Gonzalez said in a statement.
“We treat every post suggesting school violence with utmost seriousness, regardless of intent. Disrupting the safe environment of our schools is no laughing matter and can result in severe consequences.”
