A 15-year-old student at Dos Pueblos High School was arrested Thursday for allegedly making criminal threats to staff members at the Goleta campus, according to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department.
The teen, whose name was not released because he is a minor, sent threatening emails to a teacher and an administrator, said Kelly Hoover, a sheriff’s spokeswoman.
“A series of e-mails were received this morning during the 10 a.m. hour,” Hoover said. “School staff immediately responded and contacted the sheriff’s school resource deputy on campus. who responded as well. Together, within 30 minutes of when the Sheriff’s Office was notified, they were able to identify a 15-year-old male as being the source of the messages.”
The teen was transported to the county Juvenile Detention Center in Orcutt, where he was booked on suspicion of making criminal threats, Hoover said.
Details of the threats were not released.
“The safety of students and staff is our district’s number one priority.” said Dave Cash, superintendent of the Santa Barbara Unified School District. “Our staff and school resource officer did an excellent job today, and I am very proud of their efforts.
“In times such as this, I am reminded of the vital role of the school resource officer. This highly trained officer is well-known to students, works closely with the staff, is very familiar with the layout of the campus, and is an invaluable asset to our school community.”
The resource deputy at Dos Pueblos High School is partially funded by the city of Goleta, Hoover noted.
— Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.