Malaga police investigate graffiti warning of shooting that appeared in two high schools

The Guardia Civil have opened an investigation to identify those responsible for a series of threatening graffiti messages found at two secondary schools in the town of Rincón de la Victoria, in Malaga province.

The latest discovery was last Wednesday. A message in a high school bathroom in La Cala del Moral area appeared, saying: "Shooting this Thursday, the 30th, be prepared." An identical message had appeared the previous week at another secondary school in the same municipality.

Given the seriousness of the message, both schools activated the relevant security protocols and reported to the education inspectorate. In addition to filing reports with the Guardia Civil, the school staff have contacted the families of student in an attempt to prevent panic from spreading among the school community and the residents of Rincón de la Victoria.

The investigators' main hypothesis is that these threats do not represent a real danger of an armed attack, but rather are part of a viral challenge circulating on social media. The objective of these digital challenges is to create chaos and disrupt the normal functioning of the school day.

School staff recommend that parents talk to their children about the serious consequences of engaging in such actions. Even though they may be perceived as a "joke" or part of a digital game, these behaviours can constitute a crime.

This phenomenon coincides with a concerning wave of similar cases in various Latin American countries in April. In Chile, for example, the message 'Thursday, shooting, don't come' led to the arrest of a 16-year-old for public disorder.

In recent weeks, the media have also reported dozens of similar threatening messages in Santiago, Valparaíso and Biobío, forcing the suspension of classes as a precaution in some cases. The situation has been equally intense in Argentina, affecting provinces such as Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Tucumán and Mendoza.

The two schools in Rincón de la Victoria are operating normally, without suspending classes. The Guardia Civil continue their investigation to find those responsible for the graffiti.