RCMP have officially charged an 18-year-old former student of Merritt Secondary School (MSS) after a threat was made against the high school.

Police charged Jonathan Trosky with one count of uttering threats for statements allegedly made over social media last weekend, which resulted in precautionary measures being implemented at MSS this week.

Those measures include having an RCMP presence around the school, increased supervision of students by district staff as well as having the main entrance act as the only point of entry to the building, and remain in effect at the school today.

Students are allowed to exit the building through all doors, but not allowed re-entry through them.

When these precautions will be lifted at MSS will be determined on a day-to-day basis going forward, School District 58 superintendent Steve McNiven told the Herald.

Police have yet to disclose the nature of the threats that were made as their investigation is ongoing, but Dunsmore said they believe it was a serious one.

“We’re still following up [with] search warrants and witness statements,” she said.

Trosky was arrested by police on Saturday, and the district notified shortly afterwards.

“We were able to investigate those threats immediately and took a male into custody within hours of the threats having been made,” RCMP Const. Tracy Dunsmore told the Herald.

In response, SD 58 sent a message out to parents notifying them that there was no immediate threat to students or staff, and classes proceeded as scheduled, but there was no mention of the arrest.

“At that point we wanted to make sure we were giving accurate information and also protecting the investigation,” said McNiven.

Dunsmore said police don’t believe the high school to be in any imminent danger.

“We do feel comfortable that the kids are safe and we’ll continue to be on alert and aware of the situation,” said Dunsmore.

Trosky remains in police custody and will be in court Thursday for a bail hearing.

While McNiven said he feels good about how the situation was handled there is always room for improvement.

“I think it’s only prudent on our part to always debrief through these things and continue to improve this work,” said McNiven.