This Friday, new threats of school shootings were reported in the states of Baja California Sur and Sinaloa. Education and security authorities in Baja California Sur confirmed that, as of the end of this week, threats of shootings at secondary schools have been reported, which appear to be part of a “viral challenge” on social media.
The Ministry of Public Education (SEP) reported that messages of this type have been detected at eight secondary schools since last Wednesday: four in La Paz, three in Los Cabos, and one in Ciudad Constitución. According to the institution, security protocols have been activated, including the participation of cybersecurity specialists.
The State Public Security Secretariat (SSPE) reported that this type of content—the challenge—consists of posting or disseminating anonymous warnings about alleged attacks with the aim of generating panic, causing class cancellations, or gauging the reaction of authorities and the school community.
Meanwhile, at three schools in the state of Sinaloa—one of them the Emiliano Zapata Preparatory School—graffiti appeared in the restrooms with messages alluding to alleged threats of shootings this Friday. School authorities implemented security protocols.
Cases in other states
Since April 20, presumably due to the anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre in Colorado, USA, in 1999, and because of challenges circulating on social media, several cases have been reported in different states across the country.
On Thursday, a series of messages containing alleged threats of a shooting triggered alerts at high schools in San Luis Potosí, particularly at CBTIS 121 and CBTIS 131.
That same day, threats were reported at two schools in Hidalgo, leading to the suspension of classes and a security operation in the municipality of Huejutla, where banners appeared warning of a “shooting tomorrow.”
In Hidalgo, four schools have now received these types of messages. Security protocols were also activated at at least three middle schools in Nuevo León—in Guadalupe, San Nicolás de los Garza, and García—after similar messages were detected.
On Wednesday, State Guard officers implemented a mega-operation after a shooting threat message was detected in the bathrooms of CBTIS 7 in Reynosa, while last Monday the appearance of messages with shooting threats at the College of High School Graduates (Cobach) in Empalme, and at Technical Secondary School No. 56, in the Miravalle neighborhood of Ciudad Obregón, Sonora, activated security protocols.
Source: vanguardia
