FORT WORTH, Texas — A "troubling and violent" document containing a school attack plan and a "watch list" of 25 middle school students led to the arrest of two Northwest Independent School District students Wednesday, officials said.
A statement from Northwest ISD said a parent alerted officials Wednesday about a concern at Wilson Middle School, which is located in far north Fort Worth. When officials looked into the concern, they discovered "an online document detailing a planned attack on students and staff" at the school, the statement said.
Officials said several students collaborated on the shared document, which included a "watch list" of targets and a plan to carry out an attack. The watch list contained the names of 32 people at Wilson Middle School, including 25 students and seven staffers.
Officials were in the process of alerting the students and staff listed on the document.
"It’s cliché, but you don’t expect it to be you. You don’t expect it to be your kid's school or your kid," said one mother who said she'd received notification from the district her son was on the target list. "He’s 14 years old, and I’m going to tell him 'Hey some kids at your school plan to kill you?'"
She spoke on the condition her name not be because her 8th grade son was threatened.
The district's technology team was able to identify two students who were involved in creating and editing the document. District officials said two students have been arrested in the incident, but Fort Worth police said no arrests have been made, though "several suspects" have been identified.
Officials said the document contained language that "mirrors similar terroristic threats issued at schools across the country."
District officials also said that any student who was found to be involved in the document but is not arrested will be subject to punishment through the district's student code of conduct.
Officials said the district typically puts students on a three-day suspension while they investigate cases involving serious misconduct. More information about any possible punishment could not be shared by the district, which cited student privacy law.
"It’s not worth the stress, it’s not worth his life," said Rebecca Combs, who kept her 8th grader home from school Thursday. "It's alarming. I don't think I'm going to send him to school the rest of the year."
A district spokesperson said 86% of students showed up for class Thursday at Wilson Middle School.
The district plans to have additional security and counselors at the campus for the rest of the week.
"Northwest ISD is partnering closely with the Fort Worth Police Department for an ongoing investigation of the situation, and we are grateful for their support," the statement said. "We are also appreciative of the parent who alerted us of this concerning document, as that allowed us to immediately respond. Our district values transparent communication, and we will continue to keep families informed about the process of this investigation as new details become available."
Anyone with more information about the document and the plans it contained is asked to contact the Fort Worth Police Department at 817-392-4222.
The Wilson Middle School incident was the second school threat in the Tarrant County area this week. On Wednesday, Carroll Independent School District officials in Southlake canceled classes at Carroll High School and Carroll Senior High after a school shooting threat was found scribbled on a bathroom stall. Classes were set to resume on schedule Thursday.