SIDNEY — A second Sidney Middle School student has been charged in connection with the rash of bomb threats at the school.
According to Shelby County Sheriff Jim Frye, an eighth-grade girl has been charged with inducing panic, which is a misdemeanor 1. The charge was approved by the Shelby County Prosecutor’s Office.
The threat, said Frye, was made on Friday, May 6. The note was found in the seventh-grade girls bathroom, and was written on a piece of tape.
A third student was interviewed by the sheriff’s office in regards to the threats. The student, said Frye, passed the CVSA, Computerized Voice Stress Analysis, indicating the student did not draft any of the notes.
A fifth-grade girl was charged with one count of disorderly conduct on Monday, May 9. She allegedly left a bomb threat note in the fifth-grade girls bathroom on May 9. When the student was questioned about the note, it was found that she was the one who wrote it and the person who reported it. Detectives conferred with the juvenile prosecutor and charges of disorderly conduct were authorized.
According to Superintendent Bob Humble, both students have been suspended and will have expulsion hearings.
Deputies have been busy with threats at the middle school for more than a week.
On Tuesday May 3, 2022, the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office was advised that a writing was found in the fifth/sixth-grade bathroom stall of the Sidney Middle School. School staff had evacuated the students to Sidney High School. The Sheriff’s Office responded and started investigating. Explosive detection dog teams were called and one team from Lima Fire Department and one from the Allen County Sheriff’s Office responded to the school. The building was searched and nothing unusual was located. School was canceled for the remainder of the school day.
Detectives, along with school personnel, went through hours of video to determine who went into the bathroom and who left. The note was written on a bathroom stall.
On Wednesday, May 4, 2022, deputies were on scene of the middle school prior to the start of school to clear the building and to search the backpacks of all students coming into the school. Nothing of a threat was found. Later that morning another writing was found in the eighth-grade girl’s bathroom indicating something would occur on Friday, May 7. The note was written on a bathroom stall.
On Thursday May 5, 2022, deputies were on scene of the middle school prior to the start of school to clear the building and to search the backpacks of all students coming into the school. Nothing of a threat was found. While deputies were on scene a note was found in the eighth-grade boys bathroom. The note was written on a piece of paper. School officials removed the students from the school and located them to stadium. The Sheriff’s Office was called, and another search of the building was conducted and deemed safe. At that time the students were returned to the school.
Another note was found and this one was in the seventh-grade boys bathroom and this note was also written on a piece of paper. During both incidents it was determined that since the school had already been searched prior to finding the notes and having searched each student, that they would remain in class, locked down, while the school was again searched. After searching the school, nothing of a threat was found and the school was deemed safe.
Notes were found on Friday, May 6, and Monday, May 9, and two students have been charged in connection with the notes.
The investigation is currently ongoing regarding the remainder of the notes.
