For the second time in less than a week, a metro Atlanta high school student has been arrested for allegedly planning potentially deadly attacks against classmates.
A Douglas County teen was behind bars Friday afternoon after investigators determined he had been researching ways to launch a chemical attack at New Manchester High School, according to police.
Meanwhile, a Paulding County student was released from jail, two days after his arrest for allegedly posting on Facebook a threat to shoot multiple students at Hiram High School.
Joshua Ray Couch, 17, of Douglasville, was charged with criminal attempt to commit an act of terrorism and is being held without bond in the Douglas County Jail, jail records show.
Couch was arrested Tuesday after deputies executing search warrants found evidence that the teen was planning an attack, Maj. Tommy Wheeler with the Douglas County Sheriff's Office told Channel 2 Action News.
"We did find some evidence that at least one overt act was performed, which is why he's charged with criminal attempt," Wheeler told Channel 2.
After deputies were tipped off about Couch's plans, investigators searched his computer and found evidence of searches on hazardous materials such as cyanide, Wheeler said. None of the research took place on school property, according to police.
In a letter posted on the school's website, Principal Constance Craft said that though Couch is a student, he had not attended the school for some time.
"At no point were any of our children in danger," Craft stated in the letter. "The school takes any and all threats very seriously, and we always follow the established protocols to ensure the safety of our students and faculty."
In Paulding County, Dustin Wade England, also 17, was arrested Wednesday after allegedly admitting he threatened to shoot students in a Facebook post, according to police.
England was charged with making terroristic threats. He was released Friday after posting $7,900 bond, jail records show.
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