Threats lead to hard lockdown, evacuation at Academy of Richmond County

Eyewitness Shanta Sturgis posted this photo from ARC as law enforcement responded to the school for threats.

Date: January 18, 2025

Richmond County authorities were working into Friday evening trying to identify the caller who disrupted the Academy of Richmond County with serious threats.

Authorities say the afternoon caller threatened to not only blow up the school, but also shoot people. Ultimately, no injuries were reported and no active threats were located on campus.

The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office (RCSO) responded in full force to the school on Russell Street after reports of the threat. Law enforcement and campus police began evacuating students from the building in an orderly fashion, escorting them from hallway to hallway to ensure their safety. Students were handed over to their parents either for car rides or bus transportation home, a sheriff’s spokesperson said.

As a precaution, school dismissal was delayed slightly to allow for the continued investigation and safe release of students. Officers brought dogs and a bomb squad for use in searching for any bomb.

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The Author

Greg Rickabaugh is an award-winning crime reporter in the Augusta-Aiken area with experience writing for The Augusta Chronicle and serving as publisher of The Jail Report. He also owns AugustaCrime.com. Rickabaugh is a 1994 graduate of the University of South Carolina and has appeared on several crime documentaries on the Investigation Discovery channel. He is married with two daughters.

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