20 Extra Officers Assigned to Harmony Football After Threats Cleared

Harmony High School and St. Cloud High School football teams will play on Friday, October 23, with 20 additional law enforcement officers on site. The expanded security detail includes K-9 units and mounted patrol officers. St. Cloud Police Department officers will also be present at the venue.

The Osceola County Sheriff's Office received an initial tip about a shooting at the game on Thursday night. Text messages with the same threat circulated among students on Friday morning. Deputies investigated both the tip and the messages and determined the threats were not genuine.

The security increase follows an attack on a 17-year-old student that occurred on October 16 near Harmony High School. The teenager received 11 stitches after being hospitalized. Authorities stated the assault began during lunch when the student intervened in a group throwing carrots at another girl. The beating happened later that day.

Nine students were arrested on October 21 in connection with the assault. The suspects ranged in age from 14 to 18. They face charges of felony aggravated battery and felony inciting a riot.

Investigators found that the person behind the false shooting threats claimed the injured teenager was responsible for the messages. Sheriff's Office officials examined that claim and ruled it false as well. The agency had not identified the source of the threats or determined any relationship between the threatener and the injured student.

Captain Kim Montes of the Osceola County Sheriff's Office stated that false reports of a shooting would not be tolerated. She said the suspect would be charged if identified. As of Friday, the origin of the threats remained unknown.