School-closing tweet traced to North Carolina resident

Below is the message from the Howell Public Schools about the ongoing investigation into the tweet that threatened a shooting in the district:

Dear Parents,

We continue to work closely with the Michigan State Police regarding the threat received via Twitter on Sunday evening. They are using all of their available resources to investigate and resolve this case.

As of this afternoon, the Michigan State Police, using the Computer Crimes Unit, identified the email and IP addresses connected to the Twitter account responsible for the threatening tweet and they confirmed it is an out-of-state IP address. A warrant was submitted to Google to obtain the personal information connected to the email address.

As of 6:00 p.m., the Michigan State Police have identified the person who sent the threat. He lives in Lillington, North Carolina. The Michigan State Police are working with the North Carolina Highway Patrol and the Harnett County Sheriff’s Department to bring this person into custody.

While the investigation is ongoing, we feel reassured with the events that have transpired today. In turn, we are planning to have students and staff return to school tomorrow. As a precaution, we will have additional law enforcement present at our schools throughout the day.

I would like to thank the Michigan State Police and the Howell Police Department for their support with this incident.

We will continue to update you on this situation.

Sincerely,

Erin J. MacGregor
Superintendent, Howell Public Schools

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The Livingston Post is the only locally owned, all-digital information and opinion site in Livingston County, Mich. It was launched by award-winning journalists who were laid off from the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus by Gannett Co. Inc. in 2009.