A student at Texas A&M University now sits in the Brazos County Detention Center after allegedly making a terroristic threat on a social media app. The freshman student reportedly warned fellow students not to go on campus Tuesday.
“THIS IS NOT A JOKE! DON’T GO TO CAMPUS BETWEEN 7 AND 730 THIS WILL BE MY ONLY WARNING,” was the message Christopher Louis Bolanos-Garza is charged with posting on the social media site Yik Yak, according to the university’s newspaper, The Battalion. The social media site allows users to share posts anonymously with other users who are nearby.
Officials at the county jail confirmed to Breitbart Texas that Balanos-Garza, 21, was born in Humble, Texas. The Houston area community, located northeast of Houston, is still the university freshman’s home of record. Jail officials were not able to confirm any prior criminal record of the accused student.
Officials with the University Police Department of Texas A&M (UPD) reportedly obtained an emergency subpoena, The Battalion reported. The subpoena allowed Yik Yak to release the identifying information about the person who posted the threatening message. The information received by UPD revealed a cell phone number that is said to belong to Balanos-Garza.
UPD officials reported Balanos-Garza was found on the university campus at the John R. Blcoker Building at about 7 p.m. on Tuesday, according to the Houston Chronicle. There was no mention as to whether he had any weapons or other threatening items.
The freshman is currently registered as a mathematics major, The Battalion reported.
The student is being held without bond in the Brazos County Detention Center. He is charged with making a terroristic threat. Under Texas law, this is a third degree felony. If the freshman is convicted he could face up to ten years in a Texas Department of Criminal Justice state prison. He could also be fined up to $10,000.
With the current wave of shootings on campuses of education, officials are obligated to take these kinds of threats seriously. On September 11, Breitbart Texas reported a north Texas high school was placed on lock down after school officials received a phone call from a stolen cell phone reporting that a student had weapon and a bomb. After an extensive search of the campus, the threat was determined to be a hoax. Breitbart Texas’ Merrill Hope, in a follow-up article, reported that a high school student was arrested on charges of making a false report.
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas and is a member of the original Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.