Two teens sentenced in Cambridge school threats

(KHGI) Two of the four students accused of planning a school attack have been sentenced in their cases.

Aron McMains and Joseph Williams, both 18, were sentenced to one year of probation after taking plea deals in the case.

In exchange for their no-contest pleas, prosecutors lowered charges of terroristic threats down to misdemeanor third-degree assault.

A 17-year-old suspect has since had his case moved to juvenile court.

Nicholas Sheaffer, 17, has a preliminary hearing scheduled in Furnas County Court at 3 p.m. March 11, and his attorney has filed a motion to move his case to juvenile court.

The Furnas County Attorney said the Cambridge High School students were all initially charged with felony terroristic threats after school officials were told the students had plans to shoot up the building on Nov. 30.

The teens had been banned from Cambridge Public School property including the parking lot during the investigation, according to a court order.

According to court documents, the students had been discussing an attack since the beginning of the school year, and when McMains transferred to a North Platte school, records say they tried to recruit another student to act as their human shield to protect them when police show up.

Witnesses say one student also made comments about being seen on TV for killing 300 people.

In a police interview with Sheaffer, he said the whole thing was a joke, but was unsure if the others also thought it was a joke.

Police say a search of one student’s browser history turned up search results for “automatic weapons” on Nov. 20.

The arrests came after parents and community members were left looking for answers when they heard that a Cambridge school had gone on lockdown on the morning on Nov. 30.

Cambridge Public Schools Superintendent Greg Shepard told NTV News that despite rumors, the school never went on lockdown and it didn’t use police K-9 units on the property.

Shepard did acknowledge that the school received a call from a parent about a potential threat, saying the school contacted the Furnas County Sheriff’s Office and the Nebraska State Patrol to investigate.

Shepard said the information they received wasn’t severe enough to warrant a lockdown or lockout of the school, and the students continued their day as usual.

The school released the following statement on their Facebook Page, but the post has since been deleted:

“This information is to inform parents that the Cambridge Public Schools administration, Furnas County Sheriff Department, and the State Patrol conducted a threat assessment based on information reported to administration. At no time during the day, did the administration or law enforcement feel that students or staff were in danger. All parties are appreciative that information was brought forth, so this issue could be investigated. We want to caution parents of jumping to conclusions and using social media to spread information, causing fear and anxiety within the school building. If you have questions, always, contact the district office and the administration. We also want to thank our parents and community members for their understanding through a difficult day; we want everyone to understand that school safety is a paramount concern of Cambridge Public Schools.” 

(This story was originally reported by our partner station KHGI)