Local teen sentenced for H.S. bomb threats

On March 2, state Superior Court Judge Eugene A. Iadanza, sitting in Freehold, sentenced a 16-year-old boy from Manalapan on two counts of false public alarm, both third degree offenses. On each of the two charges, the juvenile received an 18-month period of probation and was sentenced to a 30-day custodial sentence, for a total of 60 days. The second 30-day sentence was suspended, according to information provided by the Monmouth County Prose-cutor's Office.

In addition, the juvenile's driving privileges were revoked by the court and he has been ordered to pay approximately $6,500 in restitution and fines. The charges stemmed from writing false bomb threats on the walls of Manalapan High School. The juvenile had previously entered pleas of guilty to both charges on Dec. 11.

According to the Prosecutor's Office, on Oct. 11 at about 12:30 p.m. a bomb threat was discovered written on the wall of a boys bathroom in Manalapan High School. This threat made specific reference to a bomb that was to explode on Oct. 13. On the morning of Oct. 13, prior to the start of school, the building was cleared by law enforcement officers using canine units specially trained to detect explosives. Additional reasonable measures were employed to ensure that no explosives were brought into the school, according to the Prosecutor's Office.

On Nov. 6 at about 10:36 a.m. another bomb threat written in the same bathroom was discovered. This threat was brought to the attention of school officials. An internal investigation by the school resulted in the identification of the 16-year-old boy who had entered the bathroom earlier in the morning. When the student was identified, the investigation was turned over to the Manalapan Police Department. Follow-ing an investigation, charges were filed against the juvenile with respect to both incidents.

Monmouth County Prosecutor Luis A. Valentin praised the sentence imposed by the court and said, "This sentence of incarceration should serve as a wake-up call and a strong deterrent to those juveniles in Monmouth County who consider false bomb threats to be harmless pranks.

"When law enforcement agencies divert resources to investigate false bomb threats, other residents of our communities are put needlessly at risk. Law enforcement agencies and school administrators will continue to work closely in the future to investigate these crimes and hold the responsible parties accountable," he said.

The Manalapan boy will appear in court again on July 9 at which time Iadanza will inform him when his custodial sentence will begin and where it will be served, according to the Prosecutor's Office.