Teen held in Mundelein High School social media threat
A Mundelein teen is being held on $5,000 bail for, authorities say, creating a social media post that threatened violence at Mundelein High School.
Juan Bello, 18, was expected to post the required $500 bond Monday after he was charged with a felony count of disorderly conduct for creating the post showing a photo of a hand holding a gun and warning "Mundelein ain't ready for this," authorities said.
A second teen, a juvenile, also faces charges. That student is not being named because he is underage and will be prosecuted in juvenile court, authorities said.
Both students have been removed from the school.
Police said the handgun shown in the photograph has been recovered and was found to be fake.
Mundelein Police Chief Eric Guenther said in a news release Monday that both teens have been cooperative during the investigation and indicated "there was never any intent of harm meant towards anyone and that this was a matter of poor decision making on their parts."
Before the arrests, Mundelein High School officials said they were taking the threat seriously and that extra precautions would be taken on campus.
The district wrote in a Facebook post last weekend, "Following the Parkland, Florida, tragedy there is an upward trend of baseless threats across the country aimed at causing insecurity at our educational institutions. Unfortunately, Mundelein High School is experiencing this trend."
A former Streamwood High School student, a Round Lake Beach teen and an Aurora student have all been charged with disorderly conduct over social media posts containing potential threats against schools in recent weeks. Lake Park High School in Roselle dismissed students early Friday after a threat.
Authorities said a Mundelein High student reported the social media post, and parents told authorities they had seen the message. Bello is due back in court March 8.