A custodian at Harwood Union High School was cited on misdemeanor charges Wednesday for allegedly writing “I am going to kill you all” on a mirror in a boys bathroom using liquid soap.
Dick Peck, 51, of Moretown was cited for misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct and creating a false public alarm, police said in a statement released Wednesday evening. He is set to appear in Vermont Superior Court in Barre on Thursday.
Police were notified of the threat on Tuesday night. According to a press release sent to parents and other community members Wednesday, it was also Peck who “discovered” the message.
“It saddens me to report that this evening an arrest has been made by the Vermont State Police of that custodian,” said the statement from Brigid Nease, superintendent of the Harwood Unified Union School District. That message did not name Peck.
Nease said that the administration, together with police, interviewed 60 people during the brief investigation into the threat.
“Our students were absolutely remarkable,” she wrote. “I am so proud of them and how they worked directly with us to get to the bottom of what happened.”
Nease also thanked staff and Vermont State Police for their assistance in the investigation. She said that eight undercover detectives and four uniformed officers spent the day at the school.
“While we hope that we never have another crisis event,” she wrote, “we have learned some lessons and will be changing our procedures based on feedback received to include the following.”
• If we have a need to message out we will send that message to all parents and all staff in all schools, regardless of where the event happens.
• If we have a need to send a difficult mass email message, we will also send an ALERT call and text to parents alerting them to read their email.
The superintendent wrote that operations will return to normal Thursday. “The team believes the concerns regarding the threat have been resolved,” she said.
Read the story on VTDigger here: Janitor arrested at Harwood Union High for threatening message on mirror.