Wayland-Cohocton cancels classes following 'unresolved' threat on social media
A public school system in Steuben County cancelled classes Thursday in response to an "unresolved" threat on social media that came from outside of New York state.
Wayland-Cohocton officials said in a statement on the school website that the district "received notification of a threat made on social media," acknowledging the situation late Wednesday night.
"The district began working with the local law enforcement to investigate the threat. At this time the district and law enforcement have not been able to resolve the situation," the district said in the release.
Thursday morning, Steuben County Sheriff James Allard said the original social media message was reported to the department with a photo depicting what appears to be a firearm, with a caption, “Don’t come to school tomorrow."
"It is now confirmed that this message originated in Wisconsin, with a similar sharing and response within the local school district there," Allard said. "The originator of the message is currently in police custody in Wisconsin. There appears to be no direct association between this person and anyone in the Wayland-Cohocton School District outside of social media."
The district said classes on both of the school's campuses are cancelled for the day. The move also includes no school for Wayland-Cohocton students who attend off-campus programs at other locations, including BOCES centers, the school said.
The district's main campus is in Wayland, with a pre-kindergarten site in Cohocton.
"The district and law enforcement will continue the investigation throughout the day, today. We will update families with any new information," the district said in its online alert.
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According to the New York State Department of Education, Wayland-Cohocton has a K-12 enrollment of roughly 1,200 students.
The district sent out a message at about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday alerting parents and the community that officials were aware of the social media threat.
The district cancellation announcement was posted hours later, early Thursday morning.
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This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: Wayland-Cohocton cancels classes after social media threat
