Police have arrested a 22-year-old Michigan man in connection with two bomb threats made at San Benito High School in early December, according to police.
Police on Friday revealed that early in the investigation they found that Jason K. Smith had been communicating with a Hollister youth via social media sites. It was through the online relationship that he learned about San Benito High School.
Authorities have arrested Smith of Lincoln Park, Mich. He has been charged on suspicion of using interstate communications to make threats.
According to a police statement previously released: “Authorities in the state of Michigan located the suspect and interviewed him. The suspect provided a statement but his identity will not be released at this time due to the ongoing investigation. The suspect is cooperating with police and it appears that the students at the school were never in any danger of an explosive device.”
The FBI and police department released his name Wednesday in a statement. He made an initial appearance Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan and will be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Northern California.
The case started Dec. 3 when the first bomb threat was made at about 3:30 p.m., causing an evacuation of the campus for students there after school. Then another threat came in the next morning around 10 a.m., resulting in a lockdown.
The Hollister Police Department staff members have a social media guideline available in English and Spanish for parents who want to learn more about monitoring children and teen’s use of social media.
The Hollister Police Department has a Social Media Guide available for download in both English and Spanish on its website.
