PARMA, Ohio — A Pennsylvania man was sentenced in federal court on Tuesday after he allegedly made a threat to shoot students at Parma High School in 2018, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Russell Miley-Cruz, 21, of Scranton, Pa., was arrested and formally charged with one count of transmission of an interstate threat and one count of obstruction of justice in March, authorities said.
Miley-Cruz was found guilty of posting the threat to Snapchat on April 11, 2018, writing, “Don’t go to Parma High School tomorrow friend, we are about to shoot that (expletive) up alright man? Don’t tell cops and you will be fine.”
After making the threat, Miley-Cruz gave authorities a false phone number, denied using the Snapchat user name associated with the threat and gave other false statements to hinder the investigation into the threats against the school, according to authorities.
Miley-Cruz was sentenced to 18 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
He was also ordered to reimburse the Parma Police Department for overtime hours incurred responding to the hoax threat.
“Posting threats to disrupt a school day is unlawful conduct under any circumstances, but especially where, like here, the defendant was in another state and then lied about his conduct to law enforcement,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman. “Ensuring the safety of students, faculty and school employees is a top priority for law enforcement in Northern Ohio. This defendant deserves every day of this 18-month sentence of imprisonment.”
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