NEWPORT — A 20-year-old New London man on Monday was ordered to remain in custody pending a mental health evaluation after he was charged last week with criminal threatening for allegedly posting an image on social media that suggested a school shooting was possible.
Merrimack County Attorney Robin Davis said she was concerned about the “dangerousness” posed by Benjamin Schultz and argued that “he be detained until he could have a mental health evaluation,” and a Newport District Court judge agreed to the request.
“He posted on Snapchat a photo of an individual holding what looks like a rifle, but it was actually an AirSoft rifle, with a caption that said, ‘You better not go to school tomorrow,’ ” Davis said in a phone interview after the court hearing. The FBI alerted New London police about the post on Aug. 9, and the department began an investigation. Schultz was arrested and charged with the misdemeanor last week.
Davis said Public Defender Amanda Natoli agreed to the evaluation but wanted Schultz released while that was pending, arguing that he was not a danger to the community. A message left for Natoli Monday afternoon was not returned.
“We hope to get the evaluation done as soon as possible, but we don’t have a time frame for that at the moment,” Davis said.
Davis said the photo was not of Schultz himself but that he was found in possession of an AirSoft rifle.
Schultz, who is being held at the Merrimack County House of Corrections, attended Kearsarge Regional High School, but authorities said the alleged threat was not directed at any particular school.
Classes at Kearsarge begin on Tuesday, and while the schools don’t have a school resource officer, there will be “some police presence” on the first day of school, Kearsarge Superintendent Winfried Feneberg said on Monday.
“The threat was unspecific … this was not issued to us,” Feneberg said. “This is just from an abundance of caution.”
John P. Gregg can be reached at 603-727-3217 or jgregg@vnews.com.