The message was found to have originated from another state

ATASCADERO — On Sept. 22, a student reported to Atascadero High School officials a Snap Chat posting that had threats of a potential school shooting. The text warned of a potential shooting for the 23 or 24, and cautioned persons not to go to school. This threat was a photograph of a message written on a restroom wall.

School personnel reported the incident to the Atascadero Police School Resource Officer who conducted the initial interview and obtained a screenshot of the text. Atascadero Police Detectives, along with the School Resource Officer and with the assistance of school personnel verified that the message was not in any school in Atascadero. APD contacted agencies in the San Luis Obispo Area as well as the Santa Maria FBI field office to coordinate efforts to verify or dispute the validity of the threat.

After utilizing statewide investigative resources, Atascadero PD received information that the threat had originated in a school district in another state and had been proliferated on social media.

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Atascadero PD is thankful for the cooperation with the Atascadero Unified School District, Law Enforcement Agencies of San Luis Obispo County, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for their assistance in this investigation.

We are grateful for the student who had the courage to step up and say something, and we encourage everyone in our community to do the same, “if you see something, say something.” Atascadero Police Department, as well as AUSD and all law enforcement agencies, take any reported threats of this nature seriously and work tirelessly to keep our communities safe.

For further information, please contact the Atascadero Police Department at (805) 461-5051.