Three Separate Threats of School Violence in Long Beach

A new school threat has been reported and 3rd arrest of a student today after threats made at Tincher Preparatory School. LBPD officers were dispatched to Tincher Preparatory School (K-8 grade) to assist a Long Beach School District Board of Education Public Safety officer who had a student detained for making threats to harm others at the school.

The student had made the threat in the past week. Today a staff member overheard students talking about the threat and reported it to the Long Beach Police Department. The 14-year old 8th grade student was arrested by Long Beach Police Department for threatening school officials.

In the past two days, the Long Beach Police Department responded to potential threats of violence at three separate high schools. These threats are similar in nature to threats that have occurred regionally and nationally throughout the past week.

“The Long Beach Police Department takes all potential threats of violence very seriously and thoroughly investigates all reported incidents,” said Chief Robert Luna. “Making any kind of threat whether in person or online, is illegal and has serious consequences.”

The Police Department encourages students, parents, and school staff to immediately report any information that poses a threat to the safety of others. We continue to communicate with the Long Beach Unified School District, as well as local, regional and federal law enforcement partners, to share information and ensure the safety of our schools and our community.

“We thank those who came forward with important information.” said Superintendent Chris Steinhauser. “Please know that we take all threats seriously, and we continue to work closely with our partners in law enforcement to keep our students safe.”
There is no evidence at this time that the three incidents are related. The following bullet points are preliminary details of each incident and subject to change as the investigations continue:

POLY THREAT

• On 2/20/18, at approximately 9:15 pm, The Long Beach Police Department was made aware of an unsubstantiated threat of a shooting at a “Poly” high school.
• Detectives started investigating the matter right away and worked through the night. The preliminary investigation found no credible threat to Long Beach Polytechnic High School.

MILLIKAN THREAT

• On 2/21/18 at approximately 11:15 am, the Long Beach Police Department School Resource Officer assigned to Long Beach Millikan High School was advised by staff of a possible threat made by a male juvenile student.
• Students remained safe the entire time, but the threat was overheard by classmates, who informed staff.
• The threat was investigated and a 15-year old freshman student was arrested for 422(A) PC – Criminal Threats.

WILSON THREAT

• On 2/21/18 at approximately 2:30 pm, officers were dispatched to Wilson High School to assist a LB Board of Education Public Safety officer who had a student detained for making threats to harm others at the school.
• The student was overheard making the threats and that information was reported to staff.
• Upon LBPD officers arrival, 16-year old junior was arrested for 422(A)PC – Criminal Threats.

Once informed, the Police Department took immediate steps to investigate each incident including interviewing numerous potential witnesses, viewing social media accounts, and conducting searches. Although arrests have been made in two of the incidents, all of the investigations are active and ongoing. There will be increased patrols around all Long Beach high schools to ensure the safety of the students and staff.

The LBPD ask that the public remember to follow the philosophy of “See Something, Say Something” when witnessing or hearing suspicious activity. Anyone with information regarding a threat to a school is asked to call the Police Department immediately by dialing 9-1-1, or (562) 435-6711 for a non-emergency.

Anyone who has information regarding the recent threats is urged to call Violent Crimes Detectives at (562) 570-7250. Anonymous tips may be submitted through “LA Crime Stoppers” by calling 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), downloading the “P3 Tips” app to your smart phone (available at the Apple App store and Google Play), or visiting www.lacrimestoppers.org.