Teen charged with Halloween school shooting threat escapes

MOBILE, Ala. – A teenager accused of threatening to shoot up schools as a Halloween prank escaped as officers were taking him to a detention centre, police said Thursday.

News outlets reported officers were looking for the 17-year-old male around Mobile, where four high schools were threatened on social media.

Mobile County’s public school system released a statement saying a teen was arrested overnight for allegedly creating fake social media accounts and making threats toward high schools. The posts included a clown image and were meant as a Halloween prank, the statement said. The system said it takes all threats seriously and worked with city police and the FBI to make an arrest.

The juvenile, whose name was not released, got loose from officers after arriving at a youth centre, police said in a statement. He was last seen running away.

Police planned to have officers around the schools that received threats all day.