Clown threatens high school; juvenile arrested

Clowns in Maine

NAPLES — A 12-year-old boy was arrested Friday, accused of posing as a clown and making veiled threats against Lake Region High School.

According to investigators, a Facebook account named Jingles Deklown posted “Lake Region High School is my next stop, October 6th at 12:45 in back parking lot. I’ll be waiting.”

Police said that, in light of a recent spate of clown mischief, they took the situation seriously.

“It’s not a real threat, but people are concerned because they are scary faces and people just don’t like that type of thing, I think,” Chief Deputy Naldo Gagnon of the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office said Friday.

By the end of the day, the Sheriff’s Office announced that an arrest had been made in the latest clown caper.

“The CCSO worked with Facebook officials to quickly identify the source of the threats,” according to a 4 p.m. news release. “The suspect was identified as a 12-year-old boy who is also a student at Lake Region Middle School.”

The boy was charged with terrorizing and later released to the custody of his parents, police said. Investigators said it appeared that the boy never intended to carry out the veiled threat.

Because of his juvenile status, police did not identify the boy.