The Volusia County Sheriff's Office has arrested 26 students on similar allegations since the Feb. 14 massacre in Broward County.
A 15-year-old male student at Southwestern Middle School in DeLand was arrested after witnesses heard him say, “They are going to shoot up the school,” and watched him walk around his classroom pretending to shoot a firearm, deputies said.
He is the 26th student charged by the Volusia County Sheriff's Office on allegations of making school threats since the Feb. 14 massacre in Parkland in which 17 people were killed and another 17 injured at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
The student had returned to class after using the restroom sometime around 1:30 p.m. Thursday, deputies said. Once he returned, the teacher and students heard his comment and saw him imitating a shooter opening fire on classmates, according to the Sheriff's Office.
The teacher ordered the student to go to the assistant principal’s office. Instead, the student left the school, jumped over a fence and headed northbound on Stone Street, deputies said.
A deputy was called to the school and interviewed the teacher. Afterward, the deputy drove to the student’s home and spoke to his mother, who said he was not home, according to the Sheriff's Office.
The student was arrested around 5:45 p.m. after being spotted at 1706 S. Woodland Blvd. in DeLand. He is being charged with making a false report of a weapon of mass destruction, which is a second-degree felony.
In addition to the charge, the suspect or his family is being held responsible for paying the cost of the agency's response. The estimated cost is $1,032.
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