Walt Mares File Photo/Gila Herald: Morenci schools were canceled Monday due to an online shooting threat. The juvenile who made the threat has been identified and school returned to a normal class schedule Tuesday.
Staff Reports
MORENCI – According to an update from the Greenlee County Sheriff’s Office, a juvenile responsible for the Morenci schools’ online shooting threat has been identified and will be charged.
On Sunday night, the threat was posted on the social media platform “Snapchat”.
The post came from a user titled “Who Knows” and said “I’m someone that lives in Arizona and hates Morenci do you know we’re that is? I would stay home tomorrow if I were you And let everyone in Morenci know not to come to school tomorrow they may get shot” (sic)
The Greenlee Sheriff’s Office reported that the threat “seems to not have merit” and that officers and deputies would be at all Morenci schools Monday. However, Morenci School District Superintendent Dr. David Woodall said a decision was made to cancel classes for all Morenci schools, including preschool, Metcalf Elementary, Fairbanks Middle School, and Morenci High School on Monday out of an abundance of caution.
After law enforcement determined the threat to not be credible, athletic practices resumed Monday afternoon and classes resumed a normal schedule Tuesday.
In September, classes were canceled in Sahuarita due to social media threats to shoot “hundreds of students” in the Sahuarita Unified School District. A teenager was arrested regarding that threat.
