A Round Lake Beach man who posted a series of threats on social media against Carmel High School in Mundelein is facing felony charges and has been ordered held on a $1 million bond.
Steven Alvarado, 24, of the 1400 block of Beverly Drive in Round Lake Beach, was charged with one count of harassment through electronic communications, a Class 4 felony.
Carmel Catholic High School President Brad Bonham and Principal Jason Huther sent a joint email Thursday to parents reporting that an individual had been making online comments of a threatening nature towards the Carmel community.
Officers with the Mundelein Police Department were on campus Thursday morning.
“The police intervened early, spoke with the individual, and alerted us,” the statement said.
The individual continued to post comments directed at Carmel and the police took him into custody, the statement added.
Mundelein Police Chief John Monahan told Lake and McHenry County Scanner that police were notified of the threats around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday.
The Round Lake Beach Police Department said they arrested the individual, identified as Alvarado, at his Round Lake Beach residence around 12 p.m. Wednesday.
The threats, which were obtained by Lake and McHenry County Scanner, involved numerous different comments posted on Facebook by Alvarado.
One of them said, “Both My Hands Are Getting ItchyMight Have To Show Out Anyway Carmel Catholic Community Your MoveDon’t Drag Your Feet That Could Create A LOT Of Crying Mother’s.”
Another one of the man’s comments said that Carmel High School “is now on the clock.”
Police officers were present throughout the day Thursday on campus for student and staff safety, the school said in their statement.
The school also said that students have the option to learn remotely “if any anxieties persist through the week.”
The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office approved felony charges against Alvarado on Thursday.
Alvarado appeared in bond court and a judge ordered him held in the Lake County Jail on a $1 million bond.