KEYBOARD CRACK DOWN ON THE COWARDS
Pollies call for fair dinkum action on teen shooting threats after another GC school is twice locked down
LOCAL politicians have called for authorities to take action after students at a Gold Coast school revealed how they hid in their classrooms, fearing a gunman was on the loose following threatening messages made on social media yesterday.
Upper Coomera State College was twice forced into lockdown due to the menacing posts, one of which carried the image of a handgun.
Broadwater MP David Crisafulli and Coomera MP Michael Crandon said the government should act to ensure the cowardly keyboard warriors responsible for inflicting fear upon students were firmly dealt with. “The penalties for an offence like this should be exactly the same as if the threat was made in person,” Mr Crisafulli said.
Parents and students at Upper Coomera State College last night praised the school for its response to the threats and described how the day of fear unfolded.
PARENTS of students at Upper Coomera State College have described the fear they felt yesterday after twice receiving messages from their children that the school was in lockdown following shooting threats.
Mums and dads were left in a panic, some waiting outside at the school’s gates for news as their children cowered beneath desks and locked in classrooms.
“I was scared,” one parent said. “You don’t know what’s going on, they just said the school’s in lockdown.
“They wouldn’t tell us anything else. Just a text (from the school).”
Another parent said it was distressing to know someone would threaten to harm children.
“That’s serious that someone’s threatening young lives,” the father said.
A parent, Warren Priddis, said he waited for 45 minutes before hearing if his daughter was safe.
“My daughter was frightened but I got a text from her saying she’s OK,” he said.
Police were called to the Upper Coomera school about 10.30am yesterday after a student allegedly posted a shooting threat on Facebook in the early hours of yesterday morning.
“I’m shoot the f***ing school tomorrow, got a gun … this will be nothing on Colombians k***s,” the student wrote.
“Tomorrow k*** J block tomorrow lunch time and you need to stand up be strong enough for the first time and you need to attend the morning but can call in if I need to talk later,” read the rambling 3am Facebook post.
School administrators immediately put the school into precautionary lockdown, keeping students in classrooms while worried parents milled outside.
Just an hour-and-a-half after the first lockdown was lifted the school was again locked down at 1.30pm when the student allegedly posted a photo of a handgun on Facebook with the message “it ain’t over til I say it’s over’’.
One parent received a text from her daughter at the school revealing the fears of those inside.
“Mum, I can’t talk. We are in lockdown and have to be quiet,” the student wrote.
“They are in the school coming for us … with his gun.”
Mr Priddis, who went to the school during the first lockdown, said the second incident was more frightening.
“This is more serious, it’s a silent lockdown. He (the culprit) has made other threats that he’s been watching the school,” Mr Priddis said.
“I’m sure everything’s OK, but (it’s) frightening.”
A family friend of students at the school, Jarod Farrow, said he could not fathom why a young person would terrorise schoolchildren.
“When I actually read the threats, I thought, ‘how can someone that young ... have the mental capacity to make those threats?’,” Mr Farrow said.
THAT’S SERIOUS THAT SOMEONE’S THREATENING YOUNG LIVES. PARENT OF UPPER COOMERA STATE COLLEGE STUDENT
The Department of Education said parents had been informed about the lockdowns.
“Upper Coomera State College was placed into lockdown twice today as a precautionary response to online threats,” a statement from the department read.
“Police were immediately notified once the school was aware of the threats. Lockdowns were only lifted after police gave the all-clear.
“Parents have been notified of the lockdowns.
“The Department of Education will always seek advice from authorities and in this instance the Queensland Police Service thoroughly investigated the matter and advised that there was no credibility to the threats.”