Instagram threat compels Perryville school district to hike security; 15-year-old detained

Authorities investigated an unspecified threat posted on Instagram against nine Perry County Middle School students that led to the arrest of a 15-year-old Tuesday.

"I was notified Monday afternoon, but am not sure when the actual posting occurred," Perry County School District superintendent Scott Ireland said of the threat.

Although he would not be more specific, Ireland said the posting wasn't explicit, such as it would be in the case of a bomb threat, but it contained unflattering statements with threatening overtones.

"It just had a lot of derogatory comments about our student body and listed some of our students," he said.

Criticism in the posting was directed more at the victims' perceived actions, Ireland said, but declined to say more in the interest of protecting the students named in it.

"We're trying to avoid embarrassment for these kids," Ireland said. "We really want to protect all of our kids at all cost."

Jeri Cain, public information officer for the Perryville Police Department, said nine middle-school students were described in the posting as being on a target list.

Perryville police determined the internet service provider used to transmit the posting, then used a subpoena to find a physical address that was linked to the computer from which the post came, according to a news release from the department.

After police interviewed the 15-year-old, the suspect was turned over to juvenile authorities, the department stated.

Perryville police and the Perry County sheriff's deputies will be placed in and around school district grounds today as a precautionary measure.

The person responsible may be charged with a terrorist threat, a felony punishable by up to seven years in prison, and could face assault charges.

"It would ultimately be up to the prosecutor what the person would be charged with," Cain said.

School was not canceled Monday -- two days before the end of the school year -- but students were asked to bring lunches in clear plastic bags and avoid backpacks and loose-fitting hoodies.

As part of the district's crisis plan, access to the middle-school building also was restricted and a bigger police presence added. Those precautions will continue until the end of the day today.

"Anytime anybody makes a threat ... we take those situations seriously," Ireland said.

Ireland said he and the district administration will decide the consequences based on school-discipline policies. That could mean anything from short- to long-term suspension or expulsion, not to mention the criminal charges the suspect might face in the juvenile justice system.

Ireland, whose last day as superintendent is June 30, said nothing like this has happened in recent memory.

"It hasn't in the three years that I've been here, not to my knowledge," he said.

ljones@semissourian.com

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326 College St., Perryville, Mo.