Public schools in Montclair, New Jersey, were abruptly closed on Monday after a teacher made violent threats against the school principal in a disturbing YouTube video.
The Northeast Elementary School teacher, identified as Amir Doctry, was arrested in Philadelphia and charged with making terroristic threats, according to Montclair police.
Doctry, described by authorities as being in a "manic state," was taken into custody and hospitalized for psychological evaluation. He had been placed on administrative leave the previous week due to increasingly erratic behavior, Montclair Police Lt. Terence Turner confirmed to the New York Times.
In the alarming video, Doctry held up a letterman jacket and bizarrely declared that he was destined to become the superintendent of Montclair Public Schools, vowing to embroider the title onto the jacket.
The video took a darker turn in the caption, which included violent and threatening language aimed at the school's principal, Dr. Joseph Putrino. The post read in part, "Joe must die school shooting Montclair school shooting kills Dr. Joe Racsim Racist Joe is dead. He dies tonight."
Police confirmed that Putrino was the intended target of the alleged threats. The video has since been removed by YouTube.
The incident shocked the Montclair community. Matthew Frankel, a parent whose child was tutored by Doctry during the pandemic, described the news as a "shock to the system" but praised the district's transparency during the crisis, as reported by NYT.
Interim Superintendent Damen Cooper has assured the community that the situation was "neutralized" with the cooperation of law enforcement, and schools have been reopened, resuming normal activity.
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