By BOB MARTIN
Eagle Times Staff
CLAREMONT, N.H. — SAU 6 Superintendent Chris Pratt confirmed that a threat of violence at Stevens High School that caused the high school to be closed on Friday came from a student, and officials are working diligently to identify the person responsible.
The threat was reportedly made by a Stevens High School student on Oct. 31 through a “message”, which caused the school to be closed on Friday, Nov. 1 out of what Chief Brent Wilmot called “an abundance of caution.”
While the person who sent the message has yet to be identified, school was back up and running on Monday while authorities continued their investigation.
Pratt updated SAU 6 families on Sunday saying that the school and the Claremont Police Department are working together to “ensure a thorough examination of all details.”
“As of now, after further investigation, we have found no evidence to indicate that this threat is credible,” Pratt said. “We have determined that the threat originated from a Stevens High School student, and we are committed to identifying the individual responsible. Please know that we take these matters very seriously, regardless of credibility. Such behavior is not tolerated within SAU6, and we are dedicated to maintaining a safe environment for our students, staff, and community.”
On Oct. 31, Pratt informed the SAU 6 community that Stevens High School would be closed on Nov. 1 due to threats of violence made in a message from a computer in the high school. On Nov. 1, Pratt updated the SAU 6 community, saying that camera evidence showed that the student who the computer belonged to was in class on a totally different floor. This confirmed that this student did not send the message.
The SAU 6 team consisting of the superintendent, principal, SRO and Technology Department is working with the Claremont Police Department to identify the person responsible.
“We will continue to diligently pursue every lead to confirm the safety of our schools to find the student who did this,” Pratt said. “Once found, the individual responsible will be handed over to the police and face an expulsion.”
