Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office investigating Instagram threat to school

Beaufort County School District officials determined Friday that a threat made on Instagram vaguely linking Hilton Head Island Middle School to 9/11 was unsubstantiated.

However, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the incident, Capt. Bob Bromage confirmed Friday evening. He declined to comment further because the investigation is active.

Several students alerted administrators late Friday morning about a non-specific reference to the school on Instagram, a popular form of social media among teenagers. The students offered names of students who may have been behind the threat, according to district spokesman Jim Foster.

“While it was non-specific, we don’t take chances when threats come in,” Foster said.

Investigators conducted interviews with those students, but found no weapons or evidence of a credible threat, he said.

Beaufort County School District is conducting their own internal review, Foster said, and any disciplinary action taken against the student or students will adhere to the district’s student code of conduct.

District officials informed parents of the incident via phone Friday afternoon as a precautionary measure.

This story was originally published January 19, 2018 at 5:53 PM with the headline "Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office investigating Instagram threat to school."