The Belton school district is investigating its seventh threat in less than two weeks.
Several parents pulled their students from school Thursday after learning of the threat.
“As a parent, we do have a kid there and it’s kind of disheartening that it keeps happening,” said father Bill Von Rader. "Right now we’re torn, me and my wife are torn. Do we send our kid to RayPec? Do we think it’s going to happen over there as well? Do we just take him out of school every time this happens?”
This is the second time in a week Von Rader pulled his son from his classes after learning of a threat.
The school is taking extra precautions, including having adults escort kids to and from classes and increasing the police presence.
Still, parents and students are concerned.
“Number one is safety. They do have some protocol at the school, is it sufficient? I don’t believe so,” said Von Rader. “I think they should do more.”
School administrators and police are investigating.
The school district sent out the following email to parents on Thursday:
Dear Parents, Guardians, and Community,
I’m sad to report we have received a 7th threat this morning (Feb. 16th) in a girls’ bathroom at the high school. The threat states: “You really think security will stop us, Feb. 15, 2017 was just a distraction, we will see how many security we need to kill”. We are having adults escort students in the hallways and we have had an increased level of administration and police in the building. This is a disturbing message and will once again be taken seriously.
So, what does serious mean? Long term suspensions, up to 180 school days, charges filed locally at Belton, and then the case being referred to the Cass County Prosecutor’s Office for further criminal prosecution. I cannot state it enough; this is not a joke, nor a laughing matter. This is causing unrest amongst our students and staff in these buildings. The police and administration are meeting with all students trying to get the point across, this is not acceptable behavior and we will be vigilant in finding the individuals responsible. Please help us in putting a stop to this inappropriate behavior. Thank you for helping in this serious matter!
Dr. Andrew Underwood
Superintendent of Schools
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Lexi Sutter can be reached at lexi.sutter@kshb.com.
