OLD TOWN, Maine — After a student made a threat against Old Town High School last week, school officials and police investigated and have found the threat not to be credible.
In a statement Sunday afternoon, Principal Scott Gordon said the school, its superintendent, and the Old Town Police Department “agree that there is currently no threat to students at Old Town High School.”
According to the statement from Gordon, Old Town police began investigating Thursday night, after a student at the high school made a “very general warning statement” which another student interpreted as a threat.
Old Town police investigated by speaking with both students in question.
Following the police investigation, the school took action against the student who made the statement. The student is facing disciplinary action and will not be returning to school at this time, according to the principal’s statement. This student has not been identified to the public.
Police have continued to investigate any leads coming to them over the weekend, but “they have not been able to uncover any information which should cause alarm or give [the school] any reason to believe that Old Town High School is not safe for normal school operations.”
As police and the school continued to investigate this matter over the weekend, social media conversation turned to misinformation, causing “a great deal of unwarranted fear and stress for both parents and students.”
Gordon asked for people to use their common sense when posting to and reading social media, so as not to cause any hysteria in the future.
“Going forward, we ask you to read social media information with a common-sense approach and implore you to be critical of sources that may not have access to the best level of information,” Gordon wrote.
All social media threats should be sent to the police with a screenshot of the threat, and should include pertinent information for a follow-up investigation.