GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A 14-year-old Gainesville high school student has been charged with three felony counts of making hoax bomb threats, the Alachua County Sheriff's Office said.
The student, whose name has not been released, is a freshman at Buchholz High School.
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Deputies said the school had received three bomb threat calls, made to the front office, over the last three weeks. The first was on Feb. 8, then second was on Feb. 16 and the third was on Feb. 18.
Deputies said the “terroristic threats,” which were not known to be hoaxes, prompted large law enforcement responses and resulted in the evacuation of Buchholz High School and the disruption of the school's regular activities.
“These criminal actions created an atmosphere of fear and panic among students, school staff and parents, and diverted an enormous amount of public safety resources away from additional areas of the county, which had the potential to place other citizens and visitors in danger,” Sgt. Brandon Kutner said in a news release.
Detectives identified the student responsible for the threats through interviews with students and other investigative tools, Kutner said.
The student's possessions were seized and searched after a warrant was obtained, and the forensic search found “significant and substantial evidence” that the student was involved with the bomb threats, Kutner said.
The student was charged with three misdemeanor counts of interfering with school administrative functions, and three felony counts of making a false report of planting a bomb, explosive, or weapon of mass destruction.