Teen arrested after school closes in response to "Columbine 2.0" threat

A Newmarket school remained closed to students on Wednesday after an alleged threat was posted in a Facebook group.

The Facebook posts referred to a “Columbine 2.0” at Clearmeadow Public School. Administrators, staff, and parents of the school brought the Facebook posts to the attention of police overnight. The school opted to be close to in-person learning in light of the alleged threats.

“While the investigation was ongoing, as a precautionary measure, the decision was made to close the school to in-person learning for today,” the school said in a news release.

As a precautionary measure, Clearmeadow PS will be moving to remote learning on January 26, 2022. Bus and taxi service for routes servicing the school will be cancelled. Families, please see your email for details.

— ClearmeadowPS (@clearmeadowps) January 26, 2022

According to York Regional Police, a “young teen” has been arrested. There were no weapons or injuries, according to police.

Officers have investigated a threat made on social media regarding a public school on Clearmeadow Blvd in Newmarket. A young teen student has been arrested for the threat. No one was injured, there were no weapons, and the school was closed.

— York Regional Police (@YRP) January 26, 2022

Clearmeadow PS is expected to open for in-person learning on Thursday.

“A young teen was arrested by York Regional Police for posting the threat, and YRP confirmed there were no weapons accessible. There is also no cause for concern or additional safety measures beyond those already in place at other school locations,” the school said in a statement.

They are offering mental health services to students who want to access them.

“We appreciate an incident of this nature may cause students to require support, our focus at the school will be on supporting student and staff well-being,” the statement said. “The Board’s mental health clinicians and community support resources will be made available to the school in the coming days.”

This isn’t the first time York Regional Police have responded to online threats at a school. In December, the Stouffville Sun-Tribune reported that YRP officers responded to an online threat targeted at a secondary school in Stouffville. The situation was resolved with no injuries.