A Riverside County high school student has been was arrested on suspicion of making criminal threats on social media towards other students, police said.
On Wednesday, a Riverside police School Resource Officer assigned to Ramona High School began investigating a report of possible threats made by a student towards other students via social media. Officials said the officer found that a group of female students were part of a group chat on Instagram in which one of them shared a photo of guns along with a message suggesting violence towards a classmate.
A 15-year-old girl was arrested and booked into a Riverside County juvenile facility on suspicion of making criminal threats. The photo shared by the student originally came from a post made in Indiana, according to Riverside police spokesman Ryan Railsback.
Sufficient evidence was amassed to obtain a warrant to search her family home, where it was “determined she does not have access to firearms,” a police spokesman said. Railsback said a “School Threat Assessment & Response” protocol was followed to verify there was no imminent danger to students or staff at Ramona High.
The incident marked the third time a minor has been arrested in the last two weeks in Riverside County in cases involving students accused of making threats.
Railsback said threats made on school campuses across the nation come during a time where school shootings are too frequent. “[There is] just too much going on with school violence in our country, especially recently that we cannot handle it any other way,” he said.
As of Sept. 4, there have been 139 incidents of gunfire on school grounds in 2024, according to Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund’s data. The nonprofit began tracking gun violence at schools across the U.S. in 2013.
If you see a social media or online post threatening violence against a specific individual or school, report it by calling the City of Riverside Public Safety Communications Center’s non-emergency number at (951) 354-2007.
Related Articles
Moreno Valley boy arrested in Jurupa Valley investigation, is suspected of threatening students
Riverside student suspected of posting threats against classmates arrested
14-year-old arrested after threats made at Jurupa Valley school
15-year-old boy arrested on suspicion of making threats against Arlington High School in Riverside
City News Service contributed to this report
