PNG student arrested for allegedly making Columbine-like shooting threats
Published 2:25 pm Wednesday, April 19, 2017
PORT NECHES — A 17-year-old Port Neches-Groves High School student was arrested on a warrant for terroristic threat after witnesses say they heard him talking about a Columbine type school shooting.
Triston Brantley Miller, who is said to be an honor roll student, was taken into custody at about 1:25 p.m. Wednesday, according to information from the Port Neches Police Department.
Bail information was not available as of 2 p.m.
On April 13, PNPD was made award of possible terroristic threats that occurred at the high school. School officials notified the police department that several students reportedly overheard another student talking about the Columbine school shooting and how cool it would be to shoot students and teachers on the anniversary of the Columbine school shooting on April 20.
The suspect reportedly tried to recruit two other students to help him and he also talked about buying a gun.
Detectives interviewed several witnesses and the suspect and submitted a probable cause affidavit to the Jefferson County District attorney’s Office for the offense of terroristic threat, which is a third degree felony.
“In this day and age, if you make any kind of veiled threats of any type of shooting with mass injuries, whatever, the school and law enforcement will take it seriously whether you meant it to be or not,” PNPD Chief Paul Lemoine said.
On April 20, 1999, two teens went on a shooting spree at Columbine High School in Colorado, killing 13 people and injuring more than 20 others before killing themselves.
In March 2017, a 14-year-old student in Tennessee was arrested in connection with a social media threat referencing the Columbine shootings. The teen in that case reportedly told investigators he had made the threat jokingly.