Authorities have determined an online threat of a potential school shooting in southeast Missouri was a hoax.
On Saturday afternoon, the Perryville Police Department was alerted to a social media post depicting a rubber band gun and a caption threatening to shoot up a school Monday.
Even though the post had already been removed, detectives were able to identify the owner of the account as a student at Perry County Middle School. A family member brought the student to the police station, where officers determined the post was meant as a "joke" and the student had no intention of harming anyone and had no direct access to firearms.
Perry County Middle School is taking its own disciplinary actions. The juvenile office is determining if any criminal charges will be brought against the student.
