Derek Smith Courtesy Photo

OLD ORCHARD BEACH — Last week, police in Old Orchard Beach were called to Loranger Memorial School after receiving a report of a threat directed at the school. 

The information was received from a third-party caller on Oct. 25, who had reportedly spoken to the suspect on the phone, Old Orchard Beach Police said. 

Within about two hours, a suspect, a 31-year-old Buxton man, was taken into custody in Standish by Cumberland County Sheriff’s deputies on unrelated warrants. Derek Smith was charged by Old Orchard Beach Police with terrorizing, a Class C felony.   

Until the suspect was in custody, Old Orchard Beach schools remained in lockdown, which Regional School Unit 23 Superintendent John Suttie described as a “lockout.”  

“We kept everyone inside the buildings, double checked all of our doors, and went ahead with our regular routines,” he said.  

Suttie said school staff was not specific with students about the reasons for the lockout because it was not necessary to the situation at hand. 

“Unfortunately, these types of events are part of everyday life for schools in our country,” said Suttie. 

Old Orchard Beach Deputy Police Chief David Hemingway said in an email  the alleged threat, with reference to weapons, came through a third party who had spoken to Smith by telephone. Police searched Loranger Memorial School for the suspect and additional officers were deployed to the district’s  schools for security while the situation unfolded. Police then learned that Smith may not have been in the area when the threats were made, Hemingway said. 

Police were dispatched to the school, which educates children in grades three through eight, at about 10:13 a.m. Smith was in custody in Standish at 12:37 p.m.

Following Smith’s arrest Hemingway last week said investigators were retracing his actions throughout the morning of the alleged threat and that the probe continued.  

No further information was available at the Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier’s print deadline.

As of Monday, Smith was held at York County Jail in Alfred in lieu of $5,000 bail on the terrorizing charge and $20,000 bail on an unrelated drug trafficking charge, as well as on unrelated charges that he failed to appear in court and that he violated a protection order. 

Suttie said that when any event occurs regarding school safety, school leaders “seek feedback, ideas, concerns, and input on how we can be more efficient, secure, better communicate to each other and the public.”