Faribault Police Chief Andy Bohlen and Public Schools Superintendent Todd Sesker told KDHL POWER 96 today they are taking threats made through social media very seriously.  The threats were discovered last Thursday according to Sesker and Bohlen. The Snapchat posting stated in part, "On october 31 i am going to shoot up FHS at exactly 12:12.  Be ready roy i aint tryin to shoot u."

The lack of capital letters and other punctuation was in the message and could help authorities catch whomever sent the message.  Bohlen says investigators are working with Snapchat and there is an increased police presence at the schools.  Sesker sent a letter to parents, staff and students about 2:30 p.m. that reads:

Dear students, staff and parents,

Last Thursday we received information that anonymous threats were made toward Faribault High School and Faribault Middle School through a student's Snapchat account for October 31st.  We continue to work with the police department and Snapchat to identify the person who made the threats.  We are asking anyone with information to please come forward.  We take threats like these very seriously and are doing everything we can to make sure our schools continue to be a safe place for our staff to work and our students to learn.  As a precaution, we have additional police officers on-site at the high school and middle school this week.  We will keep you informed as new information becomes available.

Sincerely,

Superintendent Todd Sesker

If you have any information you are asked to phone the Faribault Police Department at 507-334-4305 or if it's an emergency dial 911.  The Faribault Public Schools general number is 507-333-6010.

Here is the statute the Minnesota State Legislature passed during the 2018 session dealing with this:

609.713 THREATS OF VIOLENCE.

Subdivision 1.Threaten violence; intent to terrorize.

Whoever threatens, directly or indirectly, to commit any crime of violence with purpose to terrorize another or to cause evacuation of a building, place of assembly, vehicle or facility of public transportation or otherwise to cause serious public inconvenience, or in a reckless disregard of the risk of causing such terror or inconvenience may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than five years or to payment of a fine of not more than $10,000, or both. As used in this subdivision, "crime of violence" has the meaning given "violent crime" in section 609.1095, subdivision 1, paragraph (d).

Subd. 2.Communicates to terrorize.

Whoever communicates to another with purpose to terrorize another or in reckless disregard of the risk of causing such terror, that explosives or an explosive device or any incendiary device is present at a named place or location, whether or not the same is in fact present, may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than three years or to payment of a fine of not more than $3,000, or both.

Subd. 3.Display replica of firearm.

(a) Whoever displays, exhibits, brandishes, or otherwise employs a replica firearm or a BB gun in a threatening manner, may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than one year and one day or to payment of a fine of not more than $3,000, or both, if, in doing so, the person either:

(1) causes or attempts to cause terror in another person; or

(2) acts in reckless disregard of the risk of causing terror in another person.

(b) For purposes of this subdivision:

(1) "BB gun" means a device that fires or ejects a shot measuring .18 of an inch or less in diameter; and

(2) "replica firearm" means a device or object that is not defined as a dangerous weapon, and that is a facsimile or toy version of, and reasonably appears to be a pistol, revolver, shotgun, sawed-off shotgun, rifle, machine gun, rocket launcher, or any other firearm. The term replica firearm includes, but is not limited to, devices or objects that are designed to fire only blanks.

Faribault High School Message Board. Photo by Gordy Kosfeld
Faribault High School Message Board. Photo by Gordy Kosfeld
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