Police charge Centreville teen with threatening to kill Falls Church elementary students
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/teen-charged-with-threatening-to-kill-elementary-students/2014/06/24/781528e8-fbc6-11e3-b1f4-8e77c632c07b_story.html?wprss=rss_crime
A 14-year-old boy has been charged for allegedly creating a Twitter account in the name of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooter Adam Lanza and using it to threaten to rape and kill students at a Falls Church elementary school, according to police and a search warrant.
The Centreville teen was arrested in May and faces a felony charge of making threats, after admitting to a Fairfax County detective he used the social media site to target students at Belvedere Elementary School, according to police and a search warrant.
The Post does not generally name juveniles charged with crimes.
Police began investigating in March after receiving a report that someone was making threats on the school’s Twitter page. The threats were made from a Twitter account that features a color photo of Adam Lanza, who shot and killed 26 students and adults at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school in 2012.
Some of the threatening tweets included “I shot them like I shot your kiks,” “I shot ur kid,” “they deserve to beaten” and a picture of six students with the caption “Die,” the search warrant shows.
Detective B.D. Ellingson also wrote in the court document that the user engaged in a conversation on Twitter with a person who appeared to be a Belvedere student, threatening to rape him or her.
Ellingson traced the messages to a computer in a Centreville apartment building and found the teen involved after an investigation, according to the search warrant.
During an interview, the juvenile admitted to creating the Twitter account and using an iPhone to update it, the search warrant shows. The teen explained to investigators why he targeted the school, but those reasons are not listed in the court document.
The teen also told the detective he stole identities and credit card numbers online, extorted people and engaged in “swatting,” according to the search warrant. Swatting is when someone places a fake 911 call to draw a SWAT team or law enforcement to a home or other location.
Police said the teen has only been charged with making threats at this time.