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Putnam deputies: Student, 12, arrested for threat found written on school wall

A 12-year-old has been arrested in connection with a school threat in Putnam County, the Putnam County Sheriff's Office said.

A threatening message was found written on a wall at C.H. Price Middle School in Interlachen, according to a release from PCSO.

Investigators found that the student wrote the message as a prank and did not intend to carry out the threat. The student was arrested and charged with making written threats to do bodily harm. He was booked into jail, and then released to a guardian by the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, PCSO said.

Similar messages were found written on a bathroom wall at Palatka High School on Friday and at Interlachen High School on Monday. Investigators with PCSO and the Putnam County School District are actively pursuing leads in those cases.

Due to the threats at Palatka High School, more than 880 students were absent on Monday -- the day on which a note had suggested something bad was going to happen. Action News Jax reached out to the school district on Tuesday and learned about 250 students had failed to show up.

Out of an abundance of caution, the Sheriff's Office and School District "will continue to operate under heightened security measures for the time being, according to the release."