A boy was charged Tuesday with threatening to shoot up his junior high school in west suburban Naperville.
The juvenile was charged with a felony count of “false report of a threat to a school” and was released the same day to his parents’ custody on home detention, according to a statement from the DuPage County state’s attorney office.
The boy allegedly posted in a chatroom the words “want to help” and “shoot up the school” with reference to Washington Junior High School in School District 203, prosecutors said.
The school district learned of the alleged threat when someone in the chatroom grew concerned and alerted them, the state’s attorney office said.
Naperville police investigated the post and arrested the alleged author later in the day, prosecutors said.
“School safety continues to be a top priority of my administration,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert B. Berlin said in a statement. “Any threatening message directed at a school will be thoroughly investigated and charged accordingly.”
The boy was scheduled to appear in juvenile court again on Jan. 10, prosecutors said.
