School shooting threat on social media traced to Tracy teenager. Police make arrest
A 16-year-old was arrested Thursday after he allegedly threatened a shooting at a Tracy school, police said.
The Tracy Police Department received a tip about a threatening social media post around 3:22 a.m. as part of an FBI information-sharing network, a press release said. In the post, there was a clear threat of harm alongside a picture of a specific Tracy Unified School District school.
Investigators connected the post to a home in west Tracy, where a 16-year-old boy and his parents were contacted by police.
The boy admitted he made the threat but said he had no real plan to carry out an attack. He also had a realistic BB gun his parents said they didn’t know about. No other firearms or related contraband was found in the house.
Police did not release the name of the boy but said he was not a TUSD student. They also did not release the name of the threatened school.
TUSD school resource officers arrested the teen, and he was charged in connection with the threat, TPD said. Additional patrols were sent to monitor schools.
“Let us be perfectly clear, making criminal threats to harm others has no place in a civilized society,” the press release said. “We will not tolerate it in our community and will use the full weight of the justice system to bring those responsible to justice. The loss of life is not a joking matter.”
The threat in Tracy came just two days after 19 elementary school students and two teachers were gunned down in Uvalde, Texas
This story was originally published May 27, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
