A 15-year-old Martin County High School sophomore was arrested Wednesday after investigators determined he was responsible for a false bomb threat made against the school, according to the Martin County Sheriff’s Office.
Noah Taylor was arrested and charged with false report concerning the planting of a bomb, a second-degree felony.
Martin County Sheriff's Office school resource officers and criminal investigations division detectives traced the origin of the message to Taylor during their investigation, the agency said. Taylor ultimately confessed to sending the threat, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
The arrest follows multiple hoax bomb threats involving schools in the area over the past several weeks, the Sheriff’s Office said.
The agency said each threat is taken seriously and requires a response from law enforcement and emergency personnel, regardless of whether the threat ultimately proves to be a hoax.
The Sheriff’s Office said Taylor is only linked to the specific threat made against Martin County High School.
The agency said it will thoroughly investigate the incidents and pursue those responsible when there is sufficient evidence to identify them.
The Sheriff’s Office also warned that sending a threat anonymously, by text, online or through another form of electronic communication does not necessarily prevent investigators from identifying the person responsible.
“These are not jokes, and will be treated as the crimes that they are,” the Sheriff’s Office said.