ARIZONA NEWS

2 students arrested for separate school threats in Buckeye, Surprise

Sep 24, 2024, 3:44 PM

Two children were arrested early this week for alleged school threats in the West Valley, authoriti...

Two children were arrested early this week for alleged school threats in the West Valley, authorities said. (Buckeye Police Department)

(Buckeye Police Department)

PHOENIX — Two students were arrested early this week for alleged school threats in the West Valley, authorities said.

Police on Monday arrested a 12-year-old boy who allegedly left a disturbing voicemail on a phone belonging to a former teacher at Desert Sunset Elementary in Buckeye.

Buckeye PD shared audio from the voicemail in which the boy said he’s going to “shoot up” a classroom.

The threat was deemed not credible, police said.

On Tuesday, a 14-year-old girl was arrested by Surprise PD in connection with a threat directed towards Valley Vista High.

She was taken into custody unarmed and without incident before admitting to making threats of violence. Police said there was no remaining threat to the community.

“We thank the brave students who spoke up to protect their school,” Surprise Police Chief Benny Piña said. “We want to remind students, parents and community members that threats of violence toward our schools will not be tolerated.”

She was the second 14-year-old girl to be arrested for Valley Vista High threats in recent weeks.

What other recent threats have Valley schools seen?

The arrests in Buckeye and Surprise come after other Valley youths have been arrested for similar threats.

Earlier this week, a 12-year-old girl in Buckeye was arrested for threats investigated by Milwaukee PD in Wisconsin.

Last week, a Phoenix teen boy was arrested after allegedly making threats targeting 12 Valley schools. The schools saw about 6,000 student absences in the days that followed what was described as a dare from peers, police said.

Prior to that incident, a 12-year-old Apache Junction girl was arrested for posting a threat on social media.

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2 students arrested for separate school threats in Buckeye, Surprise