Cobb Police said Thursday they’ve arrested and charged a 14-year-old whom they said made separate false threats of violence that prompted a code red lockdown at Allatoona High School.
Officer Joseph Wilson said in a release that the juvenile’s actions “caused significant harm” at the school in North Cobb.
The incidents were the latest in the Cobb County School District involving reported threats of violence since a deadly school shooting in Barrow County in September.
The 14-year-old, who was identified only as an Allatoona student, was charged with making terroristic threats, transmitting a false public alarm and disrupting operation of a public school, according to Cobb Police.
Wilson said that the Cobb 911 center received a report from the 988 Lifeline Crisis hotline around 11:45 a.m. Tuesday from an individual who texted a message “claiming to be at Allatoona High School with a firearm and intending to harm students.”
The Cobb County School District Police Department was the primary responder, with patrol assistance from Cobb Police, Wilson said.
He said the Cobb Police Criminal Investigations Unit began an independent investigation and concluded that the report was a hoax.
Another 988 Lifeline hotline message was reported to Cobb 911 on Wednesday with identical claims, according to Wilson, who said that “this time, detectives were able to pinpoint the suspect—a 14-year-old male student at Allatoona High School.”
Wilson said the student admitted to making false threats during an interview with police. He was then charged and taken into custody, according to police.
Cobb Police issued a statement from a Cobb school district spokesperson saying that “we are grateful for the quick response of Cobb Schools Police and local law enforcement in investigating the reported threats this week. Their efforts donfirmed the threats were fake, and our students and staff are safe—our top priority.
“In the months since the terrible incident in Barrow County, Cobb schools have been inundated with fake threats, false reports of threats, and incidents of ‘swatting.’ The District takes all reports very seriously and will prosecute those involved to the full extent of the law. This kind of disruptive behavior will not be tolerated. We appreciate students, staff, and parents immediately reporting any safety concerns to the District’s Tipline bycall, text, or email.”
Among the unfounded threats was a reported bomb threat made at Walton High School in September as well as false threats made by a student at Dickerson Middle School, also in September.
School district officials said the Dickerson student was facing criminal charges but didn’t specify them nor did it indicate that individual’s status at the school.
At Osborne High School, two students have been charged with bringing weapons to campus in the last two weeks.
In response to concerns about safety procedures in the Cobb school district, Superintendent Chris Ragsdale announced the hiring of a private intelligence firm he said would augment existing security measures.
Some critics were suspicious of the secretive nature of the announcement, including concealing the name of the company and its leaders who briefed the Cobb school board last month.
Last week, after the firm’s name was publicly revealed, Ragsdale acknowledged that information but also urged his detractors to “take a break.”
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