A 12-year-old child has been identified as the person responsible for making at least seven bomb threats to schools across Maryland over the course of two weeks.
The minor admitted to making bomb threats via email to Montgomery Blair High School on October 13, 16, 17, 23 and 24.
On October 15, Oak View Elementary School and Silver Spring International School were also targeted in a separate email threat.
The 12-year-old admitted responsibility, however, he will not charged as children 13 and under can only be charged for a ‘crime of violence’ in Maryland, according to Montgomery police.
‘It is disheartening to accept that the individual responsible for disrupting the educational process and instilling fear in our community was well aware of the legal limitations surrounding their age,’ said Montgomery County police Chief Marcus Jones in a statement.
A 12-year-old child has been identified as the person responsible for making at least seven bomb threats to schools across Maryland over the course of two weeks
The 12-year-old admitted responsibility, however, he will not charged as children 13 and under can only be charged for a ‘crime of violence’ in Maryland
They understood that they could not be charged under current Maryland statutes.’
‘This reckless and dangerous behavior posed a direct threat to the safety and well-being of our schools and students.’ the statement added.
Detectives worked with Montgomery school IT staff to identify the suspect.
In addition to the fear and panic caused by the threats, police acknowledged the significant ‘financial and operational burden’ that each incident caused.
‘Dispatching officers and K-9 units to investigate these threats, especially when our resources are already stretched thin, diverted our personnel away from other pressing calls for service,’ police said.
‘This diversion of resources is unacceptable, and it jeopardizes the safety of our community.’
Officials acknowledged the time and dedication of the 3rd District detectives and Montgomery County Public Schools staff in their efforts to identify the perpetrator.
‘The safety of our community remains our foremost priority, and we remain steadfast in our commitment to protect and serve our residents,’ police added.
The threats come amid a troubling number of recent incidents in schools across the country.
Earlier this week, one person was killed following a shootout with Wisconsin police officers on the roof of a middle school – while up to 70 terrified children were trapped inside.
Germantown, WI police responded to a person ‘acting erratically’ in the parking lot of Kennedy Middle School around 7pm on Monday.
The school was placed into lockdown, trapping between 50 and 70 students inside during their after-school activities
An active shooter was killed at Kennedy Middle School in Wisconsin on Monday
The person climbed onto the school’s roof and shot at officers who were following on foot. The cops returned fire, the DOJ said.
Following an exchange of bullets, the subject was shot dead.
Between 50 and 70 students were trapped inside as their after-school practices for activities like cheerleading, basketball, and color guard were cut short.
The middle school was placed on lockdown due to a ‘school safety threat,’ according to the Germantown School District.
Also this week, one person was suspected of threatening to place a bomb in a robot that delivers food orders on Oregon State University’s campus in Corvallis Tuesday has been arrested, according to police.
University official sent an urgent alert on X, alerting student that there was a bomb threat in Starship food delivery robots.
‘Do not open robots,’ the post said. ‘Avoid all robots until further notice.’