Increased school presence due to threats made by a Manatee County teen

September 13, 2024

** The following media release was provided by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office. In light of the investigation, BPD increased patrols today at schools within the City of Bradenton. **

A 9th-grade student has been arrested for making threats of a mass school shooting.

On 9/12/24, Manatee County Sheriff's Office deputies and the Bradenton Police Department were made aware of multiple threats being shared on social media about alleged school shootings planned for (9/13) at several Manatee County Schools and began investigating the origin and credibility of the information.

During the investigation deputies located 15-year-old Quenin Hernandez-Moreno and identified him as the culprit who stated via Snapchat that he was going to commit a school shooting. Evidence was found on his cellphone, and he admitted to making threats as a joke. A search was conducted, and no weapons were found. He was arrested and transported to the Juvenile Detention Center.

Deputies are still investigating other social media posts. As a precaution, additional deputies will be at various schools before and during the school day today.

Sheriff Ricks Wells said, "Our student's safety is always our highest priority, and these threats are taken very seriously. We will work tirelessly to track down the people who make these threats. This is never a joking matter!"

Anyone who comes across threatening information about our schools is urged to report it to law enforcement first or through the Fortify Florida app.