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Police: School threat was hoax by Florida man

Investigators say a school threat that affected three local districts was a hoax and the suspect lives out of state.

Every school in the Pittsburgh Public Schools area was placed on a special lockdown after receiving an unspecific threat of violence.

Schools in Shaler, North Allegheny and North Hills also alerted parents and increased security, as a precaution.

Police and parents are both left wondering why this hoax happened.

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"I thought it was crazy," said Lenee Hayward, who like a lot of parents in the Pittsburgh Public School district spent an uneasy day Monday wondering if an online threat to shoot up schools was real. "I was about to go in and take them all out (of school.)"

She didn't have to because by mid-afternoon, Pittsburgh police told Channel 11 it was a hoax by a 21-year-old Broward County, Florida, man -- a prank that was taken very seriously by district officials who put all city schools on modified lockdown.

Channel 11 is cooperating with police and will not air the YouTube video where the suspect can be heard threatening to shoot up his school at 2 p.m. Monday and if he survived, other Pittsburgh schools after that.

A brief portion of the suspect's online rant, which was made while playing a video game with other players, said: "I got two AK-47s and a Glock 40. I'm shooting up as many as I can before I get killed by the cops. If I make it out of my school then I'm going to a different school. I'm going to shoot my school up because I hate people, really hate people."

In an email to parents, the North Allegheny School District announced it was taken precautions related to the same threat. The district said there will be increased patrols at the schools Monday. In addition, all outdoor activities are being held indoors.

Here's the email that was sent to parents:

Dear Parents/Guardians:

With student and staff safety as the top priority at North Allegheny, we want to inform you of a generalized threat against a school in "Pittsburgh."

On Sunday, January 28, 2018, a threat against a Pittsburgh school was received at a local television station. While no specific school was named in the threat, North Allegheny is taking precautionary measures to ensure the safety of all students.

We have been in communication with our law enforcement partners to increase patrols at our school buildings today. Additionally, any outdoor activities, including recess, will be held inside. These precautions are being taken due to an abundance of care and concern for the well-being of our students and staff.

Although it's unclear at this time which district the threat was intended to be directed toward, North Allegheny will take the necessary precautions to ensure the safety of all students and staff members.

Sincerely,
North Allegheny School District

Students in the Laurel Highlands School District will be back in class Tuesday, after classes were canceled Monday because of a threat made last week.

The district said the threat was similar to one made at nearby Uniontown High School.

Police say a freshman there had a cache of weapons in his bedroom and wanted to kill classmates.

In relation to Monday's threat, the suspect's name has not been released, but he will face charges. Police are working with the district attorney, as well as the U.S. Attorney's Office, to determine what those charges will be.

 

Cox Media Group

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