Hoax school threats disrupt Irving schools, students charged
IRVING, Texas - Hoax social media threats held up the start of school for several students in Irving as they began their day passing through metal detectors.
The hoax post first popped up in Florida and spread west on the internet.
"We have been experiencing a number of different types of threats, it started out with a hoax," said Officer Bethany Vidaurri of the Irving Police Department. "Kids have been taking that specific post editing and sharing it. You know, copying and pasting it, adding different threats to it, tagging some of our schools here in Irving in it, and we do take that very seriously."
Irving police tweeted to its community that three school districts within its borders, Irving ISD, Coppell ISD and Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD, have seen threats.
Across the three districts, 20 students have been charged, including two that actually brought weapons to MacArthur High School lat week. The pair were arrested and charged with a felony.
"We received a tip from somebody that was not involved directly with those kids that knew that the kids were bringing them to school," said Officer Vidaurri.
2 students arrested after threat of violence at MacArthur High School in Irving
The district says two prohibited weapons were found.
Most of the posts are from kids between 13 and 16 years old.
"If it's a juvenile, they're still going to be introduced, if they're arrested, into the juvenile justice system, which is going to prompt the parents to need to get a lawyer, which is going to prompt the parents to have to pay for that lawyer and any fees associated with them. So this is a much bigger deal aside from the panic and concern that it causes," said security consultant Craig Miller.
Miller says it is common for school threats to pick up close to breaks.
"I don't think that they're thinking about those things when they're sharing it. It's more for the thrill, or you know just getting out of school or whatever the case may be," he said.
READ MORE: 2 students arrested in connection to threats at Irving Nimitz HS
Irving police want parents to think about the consequences of their actions.
They are asking parents to talk to their students about what they are posting, reposting and tagging.
The threats may not be real, but the consequences surely are.