ORO GRANDE, Ca. – Parents reached out to the staff of Riverside Prep High School on Wednesday after a bullying incident led to a perceived threat, which was spread over social media.
Although the threat was found to not be credible by Sheriff’s officials, the school fully investigated the incident and shared the results with the parents, as well as the public. School officials said late Wednesday morning that the rumor was accompanied by a photo. The school resource officer with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department took the rumored threat very seriously while investigating and quickly learned it was not credible. Through further investigation, they identified those involved and figured out where the rumor stemmed from.
“The rumor started following an incident involving a student picking on another student for the kind of clothing they were wearing,” said a Riverside Prep spokesperson in a written statement. “When the student asked for them to stop, the other student replied, “What are you going to do, shoot up the school?” That conversation was twisted and turned into a possible threat against Riverside Prep that was then spread around social media.”
School officials said that they will be dealing with the bullying incident and the escalation of the incident. They also shared that they are grateful for the quick actions of law enforcement to help them ensure that the campus was safe. In addition, they were proud that the students shared quickly about the apparent online threat. “We pride ourselves on creating an environment where students can reach out to an adult immediately. We thank our students for their forthcomingness and honesty in dealing with this situation, and the patience and trust of our parents as we completed the investigation.”
