Puna Teen Faces Terroristic Threatening Charge Following Incident on School Bus

A Puna teen is facing terroristic threatening charges following a threat reportedly made on a school bus Wednesday evening.

Hawai‘i police received information from a county bus driver that a 17-year-old male was removed from a bus after creating a disturbance. According to HPD, the same juvenile made a statement regarding bringing a gun to school, prompting an immediate report to police about the statement.

Police investigating the incident arrested the 17-year-old on Wednesday, Sept. 1, at 8 a.m. for second-degree terroristic threatening. The juvenile was released to his parents and the investigation is being referred to the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney and the Family Court.

The investigation did not reveal any gun being brought to school and at no time was there an immediate threat to any schools or students attending any schools on the island.

HPD reminds the public that threats made toward any school, especially threats including the use of a firearm, are taken very seriously by law enforcement.

“Nationwide, there have been 28 reported school-related shootings resulting in injury or death in 2022,” HPD stated. “Hawai‘i Island police are committed to working with the Department of Education to ensure a safe environment for all island children attending Big Island schools and will use their law enforcement powers to the fullest extent possible in such threat cases.”

Parents are asked to caution their children about making such statements, especially on social media. Making any threat toward any school or person brings with it serious consequences.

HPD states such statements will not be tolerated and could result in an arrest similar to what occurred in this incident.