Social media threat against Rundlett remains under investigation

A social media post threatening violence against Rundlett Middle School was still under investigation as of Tuesday morning, police said. The school was placed in “secure campus” mode Monday after a student allegedly posted a threat of school violence on social media.

In a message to parents sent via ParentSquare on Monday afternoon, Superintendent Kathleen Murphy wrote that a threat was posted on a student’s Facebook page on Sunday night, which suggested that an “armed threat” would take place at Rundlett Middle School Tuesday at 2 p.m.

Murphy said she learned about the post at about 1:30 p.m. on Monday, and immediately alerted Concord Police, who went to the school to investigate. 

Rundlett was placed in “secure campus” mode Monday afternoon, meaning no one was permitted to enter or exit the building while the police investigation was ongoing. 

“We asked students to just stay in place in their classrooms, not in the hallways or roaming all over the building, we asked them to stay in place while the police did their investigation,” Murphy said at a School Board meeting Monday night.

Concord Deputy Chief John Thomas declined to discuss the case Tuesday morning, saying it is still under investigation.

Murphy said she reached out to Chief Bradley Osgood to request additional police presence at Rundlett Middle School for Tuesday.

“These kinds of incidents cause a lot of anxiety for our families, our parents, our grandparents, our community in general,” Murphy said. “So I asked the Chief to stage additional officers at the school so that folks could see that. There will be officers in the morning and throughout the day in the buildings just to let people know they're around, they care about the youngsters at the school, and they want to make sure that everyone is safe.”