Two girls arrested in connection with bomb threats at Thurston County schools
Two girls have been arrested and booked into juvenile detention in connection with a series of bomb threats made against area schools over the weekend, according to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office.
The Sheriff’s Office began investigating a voicemail bomb threat at Olympic View Elementary school near Lacey after a School Resource Officer learned of the threat.
The Sheriff’s Office then learned that Yelm police also were investigating a similar threat at Mill Pond Elementary in Yelm.
The wider investigation revealed that the following schools also received similar threats: Rochester High School, Yelm Extension School and Ridgeline Middle School in Yelm, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Yelm police traced the calls to two girls.
“The parents allowed law enforcement to review their cell phones,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. “And law enforcement found an app used to make the hoax phone calls. The juveniles declined to speak to law enforcement.”
The Sheriff’s Office said the case would be forwarded to the Thurston County Prosecutor’s Office.
“It is imperative to underscore that threats to our educational institutions are unequivocally intolerable,” the Sheriff’s Office said in the release. “As such, every reported threat will be rigorously investigated and dealt with in accordance with the law and our commitment to ensuring the safety of our schools and community.”
This story was originally published February 20, 2024 at 9:15 AM.
