Metro Detroit school district closed due to threat, police say

RIVER ROUGE, Mich. (FOX 2) - A Metro Detroit school district was shut down due to a threat at a high school as students were preparing to head home Monday.

The threat was aimed towards River Rouge High School as classes were wrapping up in the afternoon.

When the district heard about it, River Rouge made sure to get the authorities involved. Police believe they identified that student, but things will still be shut down out of precaution.

"At this time the community is not in danger, it’s an active investigation, and again we’re seeking charges against the individual that made this threat," said River Rouge Police Director Sotirios Arapakis.

River Rouge police could not go into specific details about the threat, but say safety is a top priority and the Wayne County Sheriff's Department is assisting. 

"We want to make sure the community is safe, the students are safe, the faculty. So, any threat that is made is taken very seriously," said Arapakis.

The district sent a letter to parents immediately, asking to talk to their children about the severity of making threats.

Part of the letter reads:

"We have informed River Rouge Police and the Wayne County Prosecutors Office that we believe these are acts of terrorism that can cause psychological damage to people because of what is happening in schools across the country. We apologize for any inconvenience closing of school may cause and please understand we will be employing additional safety protocols to make certain that students are protected and conducting business as normal."

The district said disciplinary actions will be taken, including expulsion.