Fremont police arrest 17-year-old who threatened to shoot school employee

FREMONT, Calif. - Fremont police arrested a 17-year-old boy Wednesday for allegedly making threats on social media about shooting a school employee and potentially other people at a school.

Police said the suspect made threats of gun violence against an employee at American High School, where the boy is a student, and that he also made comments about committing additional gun violence at an unnamed secondary school.   

Police arrested the boy on suspicion of making felony terrorist threats and a hate crime, as the threats included numerous racial epithets, according to a news release issued Wednesday night by the Fremont Police Department.   

The arrest comes a day after an 18-year-old in Uvalde, Texas, shot and killed 19 children and two adults and injured 17 others at an elementary school.   

Fremont police said they were alerted to the suspect's threats by staff at the school Wednesday morning at 9:44 a.m., and an investigation was begun by the school's resource officer, school officials and police detectives to identify the student.   

Police contacted the suspect and his parents and met them off-campus, where they arrested the boy and booked him at juvenile hall. 

Police have not released his identity as he is a minor. 

Police searched the student's home, where they said they found numerous pieces of evidence but no guns.   

Police said the investigation is ongoing and that the suspect made the comments in discussions with others on social media.   

"At this time, we believe that only the arrested student had made any threats of gun violence," according to the police statement. "The investigation is ongoing to determine if there are other victims or potential charges on other subjects involved."   

The other students involved in these discussions have been identified and are being addressed by school officials, police said.   

Fremont Police Chief Sean Washington praised the school resource officers, who are Fremont police officers.   

"I am extremely proud of the SRO's and detectives who took immediate action upon receiving this information," Washington said in the statement. "I am also thankful for the community members and parents who came forward, as well as the students who notified their parents of the concerning messages."   

Washington said he has ordered increased patrol checks at all schools in the city.   

Police urge anyone with additional information about this investigation to contact Sgt. Calvin Tang at (510) 790-6743 or at ctang@fremont.gov.   

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