Ex-Student Making Threats Leads To South Austin School Lockdown

SOUTH AUSTIN, TX — Austin ISD officials said a former student who entered a school bus, menacingly showed the contents of a backpack, threatened students and then fled led to the lock-down of Akins High School Thursday morning — an incident that comes at at time of heightened anxiety nationwide over school students' safety.

At a press briefing following the morning lock-down, district Police Chief Chris Evoy said a 17-year-old former student boarded an Austin ISD bus while carrying a backpack at about 8:45 a.m. while making verbal threats. He said the suspect than entered the school while making more threats, saying he wanted to shoot up and explode the school.

The teenager displayed the contents of the backpack during his tirade, the chief said. An earlier tip from a student suggested the teen had ammunition, and Evoy told reporters the teen had a magazine and ammunition but no gun after he was apprehended.

Austin ISD Superintendent Paul Cruz confirmed the teen threatened to shoot and blow up the school. Given those initial reports, Cruz said the actions taken by school officials were necessary steps to protect students and staff at the high school.

"Certainly, I think it's a different day for all of us," Cruz said in reference to violence-fueled awareness of school safety given incidents elsewhere in the country. "There's a heightened awareness of safety. Safety for us is extremely important for Austin ISD, and it is for all of our schools."

Related story: Akins High School Lockdown Being Lifted

The suspect was later located at Southpark Meadows, the police chief said, where he was taken into custody at around 10:25 a.m., and has been charged with making terroristic threats — a felony charge. The lock-down at the high school subsequently was lifted at 1:45 p.m. after police made a sweep of the interior and exterior of the school to ensure no other threat lingered, district officials said.

The identity of the former student has not yet been disclosed. The high school is located at 10701 S. 1st St. in South Austin.

The anxiety-inducing incident comes at a time of heightened concern over school safety in the wake of a shooting at a Florida high school where 17 people — 14 students and 3 teachers — were mowed down by a former student. The massacre has led to an ongoing debate about the best methods to fortify school safety and the possibility of enacting stricter gun controls.

Austin ISD officials later sent a letter to parents to assure them of the peaceful resolution to the crisis.

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