Police at Blackman-Leoni Twp. are stressing to parents of children at Jackson Northwest Community Schools that they are taking the issue of children's safety seriously.
"The administration at both Northwest Schools and at Blackman-Leoni Public Safety have children, nieces, nephews and/or loved ones that attend or work at Northwest Schools. Decisions that are made affect our loved ones at the same time they affect yours."
The police posted on their Facebook page that they will have additional officers present at the campus on Monday, with the intention of making the faculty and students feel safe.
Students were allowed to return to Northwest Community Schools on Friday, following classes being cancelled due to the threat on social media.
Thursday evening, Superintendent Geoff Bontrager took to the district's social media accounts to let parents and students know about the threat and that classes Friday were cancelled.
"I just want to send out a message to make you aware that a high school student has stated to “shoot up the school” on Friday through social media. The NW Admin Team, Blackman Police Dept, and Jackson County Sherriff’s Dept are actively pursuing the situation to apprehend," Superintendent Geoff Bontrager posted on the district's Facebook page.
On Friday, at about 10 a.m., Blackman-Leoni Twp. Department of Public Safety posted that they have reviewed information regarding the situation and have determined that it's safe for students to return to the campus for any scheduled activities.
They also added in a Facebook post that "The threat was posted on social media, using a 16-year old student’s old Facebook account, which had not been used, prior to this incident, since 2016. The student states that he didn't make the threat and believes his account was hacked."
