Feb 19, 2008 12:43 pm US/Central
High School Security Boosted After MySpace Threats
Additional Police Cars Sent To East Aurora High
AURORA, Ill. (Aurora Beacon News) ―
Additional police cars were stationed at East Aurora High School Tuesday after a message on a student's MySpace page caused alarm.
The message was posted on the 15-year-old East High student's Web page Sunday, according to Aurora police spokesman Dan Ferrelli. The message appeared to be a vague threat against other students, who were mentioned by name, police said.
"The message was more eerie than anything," Ferrelli said.
The student's post is a long rambling paragraph that complains about people who talk behind his back. The post lists particular students the 15-year-old felt wronged him and then says: "think again about another person u hurt think about what could and might possibly happen u could get shot with a 9 mm in the head or back... think about it next time u hurt someone."
Ferrelli said the student also said on the Web page that he would never hurt anyone.
"He apparently told law enforcement he was blowing off steam," Ferrelli said.
The Kane County sheriff and state's attorney's offices investigated the incident, but no one was charged. The student, who was not identified, agreed to remove the message from his MySpace page.
A message from the School District Tuesday said the 15-year-old student had been removed from East High two weeks earlier. The student was sent to an alternative school for the rest of the year for an unrelated issue. He has not been in the school building since Feb. 5, according to school officials.
"We took this very, very seriously," East Aurora spokesman Clayton Muhammad said. "Our kids' safety and the perception of an unsafe environment is important."
Word spread through students' MySpace pages after the message was posted Sunday. Several families contacted Aurora police, who opened an investigation Sunday.
MySpace messages helped get out the word about the threat, however Muhammad said they also spread several false pieces of information, which the district spent Tuesday combatting and correcting.
Around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, e-mail and phone messages went out to parents.
School was closed Monday for President's Day, but some parents held their kids out of class. Muhammad said there were an "inordinate amount" of students absent from school Tuesday, but classes went on as usual.
"I ... pulled my child out of school because you never know what's going to happen," said parent Veronica Robles, who has a freshman at East High.
By Matt Hanley / Aurora Beacon-News
(CBS 2, the Naperville Sun and the Aurora Beacon-News are news partners covering stories in the western suburbs. Send story tips to tips@cbs2chicago.com. (© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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