PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — School officials are investigating after three bullets were found in the auditorium at Treasure Coast High School in Port St. Lucie, a school district spokeswoman said.
Lydia Martin, the chief communications officer for St. Lucie Public Schools, said a student found the bullets Wednesday afternoon at the school, located at 1000 Southwest Darwin Boulevard, and reported it to administrators.
The bullets were unspent, meaning they hadn't been fired.
School officials are now reviewing security camera footage to determine how the bullets got in the auditorium.
Martin said two bullets were also found in the auditorium at Treasure Coast High School last month. Police came and filed a report, however, parents were not notified because it was considered an isolated incident.
"That should have been a mass text to go out immediately," said parent Stephen Scrother. "Why wouldn't they notify that?"
St. Lucie Co Public Schools also confirms two bullets were found in the auditorium at Treasure Coast High School about a month ago as well. The district says parents were not notified at the time bc it was considered an isolated incident. @WPTV @FOX29WFLX pic.twitter.com/pcG4gilPcv
— Ryan Hughes (@HughesWPTV) October 14, 2021
In addition to the discovery of the bullets on Wednesday, Martin said St. Lucie Public Schools was alerted to a social media post which appeared to show a threatening message written on a tile wall, possibly in a bathroom.
Martin said all the bathrooms at Treasure Coast High School were checked and school officials never found any writing on the walls.
Law enforcement officers looked into the social media post and determined there was no credible threat and no evidence that the post was connected to the school, Martin said.
The following message was sent to parents on Thursday regarding both incidents:
"This is Principal Smith with some important information. Early this morning school administration was made aware of a social media post depicting writing on a tile wall. There was no threat in the writing itself, however, others took screenshots of the post and indicated that someone was making a threat to the school. There is no evidence that this post is connected to Treasure Coast, however, out of an abundance of caution, our law enforcement partners are investigating the social media post. In an unrelated matter, 3 bullets were found in the auditorium late yesterday afternoon. It is unclear how long these items were in the auditorium. This too is being investigated by our school resource officers.
We encourage students, staff, parents, and community members to immediately report any concerns, suspicious activities, or postings to 911 or contact Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers at 800-273-8477. They can also contact their school administrators, teachers or campus resource officers."
Martin said parents were notified about the bullets this time around because it was the second incident, and St. Lucie Public Schools wants to provide transparency with social media posts and rumors floating around.
A spokesperson for the St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office said the bullets found Wednesday are from a 9mm caliber weapon.
At this point, the sheriff's office said there is no criminal investigation and the bullets are considered found property.
"It was kind of scary. At first we didn't understand what was going on," said student Christina Charles.
Questions are circling among students, after St. Lucie Public Schools said three bullets were found inside the the school's auditorium.
"I heard kids yelling, bullets," Charles said. "I saw them running down the hallway, so we thought something had happened."
The district doesn't think the bullet incidents are related, but the school is now trying to figure how long the bullets were in the auditorium and who put them there.
"It's getting a little repetitive now. We're wondering where it's coming from, who's putting them there, if it's just a joke or serious," Charles said.