Juvenile receives terroristic threat charges after targeting WJW students
Dec. 1—MOULTRIE, Ga. — The same day that several Georgia schools received hoax calls of a school shooting, Colquitt County investigators were looking into a separate case at Willie J. Williams Middle School.
A juvenile has been charged with terroristic threats and identity fraud after he apparently tried to make it look like another student threatened to bring a gun to school.
The Colquitt County School District did not receive any threats on Wednesday, when other schools — including Valdosta High School — received the hoax calls, but officials became aware of threats on social media the day before regarding Willie J. Williams Middle School.
"The student that received the threat took a screen capture of the conversation and began sending the screen-captured image to their friends. The image made it through several different people before someone finally alerted law enforcement about the threat," the Colquitt County Sheriff's Office said in a statement posted to its Facebook page Wednesday evening.
Investigators with the CCSO and the Moultrie Police Department, as well as Sheriff Rod Howell made contact with a juvenile whose name matched the name on the sending Instagram account.
"After conducting an investigation at the juvenile's house, speaking with the juvenile, interviewing parents and relatives, and searching electronic equipment at the house, it became apparent that the juvenile was the target of cyberbullying and set up," the release said.
CCSO deputies and investigators reported to Willie J. Williams Middle School as classes began Wednesday morning when they were able to determine a suspect of the cyberbullying. The student admitted creating a fake Instagram account in an attempt to get another student in trouble, the sheriff's office release said. The student was taken into custody.
Identities of everyone involved were withheld because of their ages.
The CCSO thanked the MPD, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Willie J. Williams Middle School staff and administrators, Colquitt County School System, Colquitt County Director of School Safety Sean Edgar, and the Colquitt County School Resource Officers for their help in the investigation.
Investigators requested that parents continue monitoring their children's online presence to prevent future incidents of cyberbullying and in-class bullying going forward.
There appears to be no connection between the WJW incident and a series of calls that went out to several schools Wednesday reporting an active shooter.
Valdosta High School initiated a lockdown after the threat of an active shooter, according to a statement from the school system published on the Valdosta Daily Times website. First responders reported there were no shooters or injuries found, although some people reported panic attacks or anxiety attacks.
Gov. Brian Kemp also released a statement on Twitter Wednesday evening regarding the threats.
"The security of schools across multiple coastal counties was unexpectedly put to the test this morning due to a cruel hoax," the statement reads. "Law enforcement across all levels immediately sprang into action. They did not hesitate to rush toward potential danger to protect our children. Within five minutes of the first emergency call at the first school, state troopers were in the building, combing for any threats. I want to thank every law enforcement entity involved in today's emergency responses."
