MEDIA RELEASE

Date: February 11, 2022

From: Tunica County Sheriff's Office

DESCRIPTION:

On Tuesday, February 08, 2022 at approximately 1116 hours, Tunica County Sheriff's Office received a call in reference to a Bomb Threat at the Tunica Elementary School, located at 690 School Street Tunica, MS 38676. Law Enforcement and First Responders were dispatched to the scene, and all schools within the Tunica County School District had begun their evacuation as pertaining to the Bomb Threat.

The Tunica County Sheriff's Office began their investigation along with the Tunica Police Department. All areas were checked uniformly on all school campuses both internally and externally. The search of a bomb or anything that appeared that can be used as bomb material or explosives were unfounded.

Sheriff Investigators begin their standard procedures and later discovered after an extensive investigation under exigent circumstance dealing with phone records, it was discovered that the call was made by a female juvenile student from the Rosa Fort High School. This call was made anonymous from a blocked number.

Investigators later discovered that there was possibly two person of interest, but after carefully investigating, there were only one person whom was allegedly discovered as the female juvenile responsible for calling in the Bomb Threat.

Today, February 10, 2022, a hearing was conducted in Juvenile Court for the 14 year old Juvenile. Tunica County Sheriff's Office, Tunica Police Department and the Mississippi Highway Patrol assisted in this investigation. The F.B.I was also contacted according to Standard Operating Procedures. On February 14, 2022 at approximately 1026 hours, Rosa Fort High School received a third bomb threat, evacuations and investigations procedures were activated. Within hours investigators had a person of interest identified and later taken into custody. The Juvenile Court Judge has set hearings. One Juvenile was transported to a Juvenile Detention Center on yesterday, February 14, 2022, and another Juvenile was transported on today, February 15, 2022 to a Juvenile Detention Center as well. The Judge also set a hearing for February 28, 2022 concerning Juvenile(s) cases as related to Bomb Threats.

If anyone has any questions concerning this investigation, please contact Lieutenant Favian Jones, Criminal Investigations Division at the Tunica County Sheriff's Office, at (662) 363-1411 ext. 3029.