Broward County, FL – A surge of school threats has prompted authorities in Broward County to arrest nine students since the start of the school year.
The students, ranging in age from 11 to 15, made threats on various social media platforms, including Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, and WhatsApp.
According to the Broward County Sheriff’s Office (BSO), the threats varied from bomb threats to promises of school shootings.
Several students claimed their posts were jokes, but authorities emphasized that such threats are not to be taken lightly.
“It’s a crime,” Broward Schools Superintendent Dr. Broward Hepburn tells WPLG . “When you make a threat to our school. It is definitely not a joke.”
The arrested students attended schools across Broward County.
Among them were a 14-year-old boy who threatened multiple schools and an 11-year-old who made a bomb threat at Somerset Academy in Deerfield Beach, forcing the entire school to be evacuated.
Judge Elijah H. Williams warned students that making such threats could have serious consequences.