Social media threat prompts increased security at Lancaster High School

LANCASTER, S.C. — A social media threat prompted increased security at Lancaster High School on Wednesday, district leaders said. 

The Lancaster County School District received an alert through social media about an alleged shooting threat at Lancaster High on Sept. 11. Extra staff and law enforcement were called to the school as a precaution. No schools were placed on lockdown due to the threat, Lancaster County officials said. 

Families and staff were notified of the extra security after students were in place, district leaders said. 

The incident comes one day after two people, including an 11-year-old, were connected to a string of threats at schools in Cleveland, Gaston and Lincoln counties. The 11-year-old was accused of threatening posts against schools in Gaston County. The other suspect, who is under 18, was arrested in connection with threats in Cleveland County. 

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Investigators haven’t said if the threats were coordinated or if either suspect was responsible for threats made against schools in Lincoln County. 

Jody Seagle, an administrative captain with the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office, said the threat originated Monday night. 

“There were some photos that began circulating on social media of an individual, just the individual’s hand, holding a firearm and some of the photos had some caption of threats toward different schools in Cleveland County,” Seagle said.

This story will be updated. 

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