RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – Raleigh police were stationed at Wakefield High School overnight and into the morning and some students stayed home today after a social media threat about a “massacre” at the school was made Wednesday night.
“At 6:23 p.m., (the Raleigh Police Department) was made aware of a social media posting communicating a threat to the school,” police wrote in a news release on Wednesday night.PREVIOUS STORY: Raleigh police boost presence at high school after online threat
Police confirmed that extra officers would be at the school Thursday. A number of police cars were seen in the parking lot early on Thursday before school started.
CBS North Carolina’s Lauren Haviland spoke with some students who did choose to come to school on Thursday.
One student, junior Brynn Moore, said she came to school following first period, after breakfast – the time when the “massacre” was supposed to take place.
“I didn’t go to first period because my mom had told me to stay home just for safety precautions,” she said.
Although she came late, she said she didn’t necessarily believe the threat.
“I think it was probably some idiot that was just being stupid behind a screen and wanted to cause some ruckus,” said Moore.
Senior Trey Pearson said it was “disheartening to know that somebody would even do something like that.”
Both Pearson and fellow senior Matilda Delawar responded “Oh yeah,” when asked if they thought the person who made the threat could actually be a student at the school.
Delawar said she came to school and then decided to leave after there were only about five students in her class of 30.
“I am skipping. I am leaving. I did not want to stay there anymore. I just felt like all this I don’t know when somebody is going to do what or what they’re planning, or what state of mind they’re in at all. I’d just rather be safe,” she said.
Delawar said she wouldn’t be shocked if something bad did happen at the school and that she was concerned after she didn’t see police search any students.
“I feel like today’s day things are crazy all the time so I don’t doubt that something like this could happen, especially in a place like Wakefield,” she said. “The police didn’t search anybody, so I was like, ‘I don’t feel safe here,’ so I’d rather just be home and not, like, take this risk.”
Moore said she felt safer just by having the police at the school.
“Yeah, that’s good that they’re taking initiative and securing our school. I feel like they could stop it if it was there.”
Delawar said that school felt different this morning – for example, everyone jumped whenever there was a knock on the classroom door. She said that she won’t be coming to school on Friday.
Despite the threat, Wakefield High School tweeted Thursday morning that all absences will count as schools are required by North Carolina law to record attendance every day.
Wake County Public Schools System communications director Lisa Luten said that “there’s still a normal day of learning” at the high school. She said Friday “will be another normal day of learning.”
Luten said it hasn’t yet been determined if there will be a police presence at the school tomorrow and that they will probably know by Thursday afternoon if there will be or not.
Wake County schools security officials are also investigating the incident, according to a message to parents from Wakefield principal Malik Bazzell.
“I want to assure you that our first concern is the safety and welfare of our students,” he wrote. “Threats to our school are taken seriously and we will take every measure to ensure student safety.”
Bazzell also urged parents to contact administrators or police if their children have information on the source of the post.
