DENVER (KDVR) — A juvenile is in police custody after he allegedly made a false threat against Ralston Valley High School just hours after the shooting at Evergreen High School.
The Arvada Police Department said it arrested the suspect on Oct. 14 after investigating hundreds of Safe2Tell reports related to a social media threat directed toward the high school. The FBI also assisted in the investigation at that time, the police department said.
The threat led about 1,100 students to opt out of school on Sept. 11 — the day after the shooting at Evergreen High School.
The social media threat included a photo shared with several students on Snapchat that allegedly showed a gun, ammunition and a magazine lying on a table. A text caption says “Get ready for the RV” and includes a purple devil emoji.
Arvada police contacted the suspect that night during the Safe2Tell investigation, but did not have any evidence at the time to substantiate any criminal charges. It turns out the image originated from a French social media video posted in 2024, with no actual threat to Ralston Valley High School.
However, the Arvada Police Department responded to the post by adding patrol officers to assist school resource officers, providing increased presence and visibility in Arvada schools.
School Resource Officer Nicole Dearing interviewed numerous students, parents and faculty about the threat and eventually narrowed the investigation to a current student.
The Arvada Police Department said a forensic examination of the suspect’s device turned up “a significant amount of evidence linking the suspect to the original threat,” including online searches that say verbatim:
- The gun snap is ready
- Eric Harris
- Columbine survivors
- The worst school shootings in America
- Where are Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris buried?
- What would happen if you received a school shooting threat when you were a minor?
- Is there a way a police officer can come and talk to me
The police department said there were several other searches of a similar nature. Other digital devices conducted online searches for “if threatening a school shooting is a federal crime.”
Police searched Snapchat logs and found additional evidence supporting criminal charges.
The suspect is currently facing a first-degree misdemeanor of interfering with employees, faculty or students of educational institutions. The student was not identified by the police department.
News of the student’s arrest comes a day after the Colorado Attorney General’s Office announced it had the second-highest monthly reporting total in the program’s history in the wake of the shooting at Evergreen High School.