4 Santa Paula schools go into brief lockdown Thursday morning; student arrested

A student has been arrested in an incident that briefly locked down four schools in Santa Paula Thursday morning, according to school and police officials.

In a press release late Thursday afternoon, Santa Paula Police Department officials said that shortly after 8 a.m., officers responded to a report of a person carrying a bomb on the roof of Santa Paula High School. When they arrived, school staff had already detained a 16-year-old student in connection with the alleged threat.

A search of the student and campus found no explosive devices, police officials said, adding that the "campus was not in any danger today."

Jeffrey Weinstein, superintendent of Santa Paula Unified School District, said a 20-minute lockdown was lifted around 8:50 a.m. after police took the student who made the threat into custody.

"We had an incredible amount of police response to the high school," Weinstein said.

Read more: Oxnard High School briefly locked down Wednesday afternoon

Along with Santa Paula High, administrators and police locked down Renaissance High, McKevett Elementary and Isbell Middle schools — all within a mile of Santa Paula High — while police searched for the student, according to Weinstein.

"We just try to lock down anything that could be close and make sure all students and staff are safe," he said.

Weinstein said it took police about an hour to investigate and determine the threat was not credible, after which all schools "returned to normal operations."

Police arrested the student on suspicion of making criminal threats and making a false report of a bomb. He was lodged at the county juvenile facility, officials said.

On Wednesday afternoon, Oxnard High School also briefly went into lockdown after one student allegedly sent another a photo of a gun.

Last week, local law enforcement officials investigated two different threats on the evening of May 26, one at Hueneme High School in Oxnard and one at University Prep Charter School in Camarillo.

Both threats were found to be not credible, but police officials in Camarillo, Oxnard, Ventura, Port Hueneme and Simi Valley instructed patrols to focus on schools the following day, while Oxnard Police Department also posted extra officers at Hueneme High.

The threats and lockdowns come as schools grapple with the aftermath of the elementary school shooting May 24 in Uvalde, Texas that killed 19 students and two teachers.

"The current events in our nation and county, and today’s event in Santa Paula, is an important reminder that if you hear something, you need to say something," Weinstein said.

This story may be updated. 

Isaiah Murtaugh covers education for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at isaiah.murtaugh@vcstar.com.

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Santa Paula schools put on lockdown Thursday after alleged threat