By TEDDYE SNELL
A mass text sent out Tuesday to Tahlequah High School students, detailing an impending school shooting, has been deemed a hoax.
According to Tahlequah Police Department Public Information Officer Brad Robertson, a student at THS sent out a mass text, claiming a shooting at the school was in the works.
School administrators and school resource officers were able to determine quickly the identity of the student who sent the text, and realized it had no validity.
“There was never any real threat to the safety of students, teachers and staff at the high school,” said Robertson. “Now, since that incident, there have been rumors and spin-offs of the situation, including one rumor of a bomb threat, which also was false.”
As a precautionary measure, the SROs brought canines to the school and ordered extra police patrol over the past two days, said Robertson.
“The student has been sent through the juvenile services division and will be dealt with on sending such a text,” said Robertson.
“The administrators, SROs and Tahlequah Police Department take every threat, real or rumored, very seriously. Anyone sending those types of threats - real or not - will realize the seriousness of their actions.
“It is our utmost job to make sure that not only the students, but the teachers and parents, feel their people have a safe learning environment,” said Robertson. “In this instance, I feel the SROs and administrators did an excellent job. Students and parents can be assured we are watching and will be there, if they need any assistance. If a parent ever has any question regarding safety issues, the SROs are there to serve as liaisons to the police department.”
TPS Superintendent Dr. Shannon Goodsell mirrored Robertson’s remarks concerning the speed with which the situation was handled, saying the SRO handled the situation professionally.
