The Yakima County Sheriff’s Department is investigating threats made on social media against Wapato High School and students.
The district increased security this week, although law enforcement said there is no evidence that students are in danger.
School officials learned of the threat Thursday night, according to the announcement. They then contacted Wapato School Resource Officer Bobby Miranda of the Yakima County Sheriff’s Department.
Several students came forward with threatening messages sent to them from the social media platform Snapchat. The threats vary in content and come from different accounts, making it difficult to count exactly how many there have been, Miranda said. The threats have been against the school in general and against certain students.
Miranda warned parents to monitor their children’s social media use and warned young people not to accept Snapchat friend requests from people they don’t know.
For now, there are no suspects in the investigation and it is ongoing. Authorities have not found any evidence that the students are directly in danger, Miranda said.
However, the district is taking the threat seriously, district spokesman Mike Balmelli said.
“By working with law enforcement and our other security measures that exist, we are trying to ensure that the learning environment is as safe as possible for our students and our staff,” he added.
Students did not attend school on Friday due to the pre-scheduled staff development day.
More school security officers were posted to schools on Monday, with more elements at the high school, Balmelli said. Most of the district’s schools are close to each other.
Wapato High School has about 800 students in grades 6-8.
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