Teen faces felony charge over threat to Cedar Rapids school

CEDAR RAPIDS — A 17-year-old faces a felony charge after authorities determined he posted an Oct. 27 social media threat against Metro High School, Cedar Rapids police said Saturday.

The arrest marks the second time in a month that police have detained a teen for posting threats on social media against Cedar Rapids schools.

In the latest arrest, the threat against Metro, 1212 Seventh St. SE, quickly was determined by police to be unfounded and classes in the district went on uninterrupted. But the threat was then shared by others on social media, police said.

On Friday, a 17-year-old boy “was located by CRPD officers and taken to detention,” according to a police news release. Police said the teen, who they did not name, is not a student in the Cedar Rapids Community School District but they did not say where he is from or where he was located.

Police said the teen will be charged with intimidation with a weapon, a Class D felony. The case, once the teen is charged, will proceed through juvenile court, according to Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks.

A month ago, on Oct. 5, police announced that a 14-year-old was arrested and faced a charge of intimidation with a dangerous weapon — a Class C felony — over threats that disrupted classes in the district and led to temporary security restrictions.

After those threats, which police did not describe, school officials canceled classes for a day across the district and then temporarily instituted restrictions that included a ban on bringing backpacks to school.

In that case, the teen — who police also did not identify — was also charged in juvenile court.