FESTUS, Mo. — A man has been arrested after making a terrorist threat toward Festus High School students, police said in a release on Tuesday.
On Dec. 4 at about 10 p.m., Festus police were notified of a threat posted on social media towards Festus High School. Police said the person who posted the threat stated "I'm going to shoot Festus high school students in the name of Kyle Rittenhouse."
Festus police went to the suspect's house and arrested him for making a terrorist threat. Mitchell Lovelace, a 27-year-old Festus resident, was then charged with Making a Terrorist Threat in the 2nd Degree. He's being held without bond at the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office in Hillsboro.
Police said the Festus R-6 School District was made aware of the threat at soon as police received it. Staff and parents were also notified. School resource officers are also on heightened patrol on the district campuses, police said in the release.
Kyle Rittenhouse was acquitted of all charges on Nov. 19 after pleading self-defense in the deadly Kenosha shootings that became a flashpoint in the debate over guns, vigilantism and racial injustice in the U.S.
He had been charged with homicide, attempted homicide and reckless endangering after killing two men and wounding a third with an AR-style semi-automatic rifle during a tumultuous night of protests over police violence against Black people in the summer of 2020.
