Substitute Teacher Arrested After Terror Plans Found

By WXIA-TV Atlanta

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. -- DeKalb police arrested a substitute teacher from St. Pius X Catholic High School on Thursday after what they called a terroristic plan was found on the campus. The substitute teacher confessed to authoring the plans.

On Wednesday, St. Pius' principal, Steve Spellman, went to the DeKalb County Police Department's Tucker precinct to have officers take a look at a military-style paper mapping he said was discovered on the school's campus.

Police handed the mapping over to DeKalb Police Special Ops personnel for further investigation. It was determined that the mapping was some kind of terrorist plan written by someone with a possible military background. The plan included an outline of the high school grounds and involved firearms.

DeKalb officers were dispatched to the school to conduct a sweep of a campus. The sweep did not find anything out of order.

On Thursday morning, officers returned to the campus as a precaution.

Upon seeing all of the extra police officers on the school's campus, substitute teacher David Sabino, 26, began asking questions about all of the extra manpower. He went to the principal's office and said that he was the author of the plans in question. He was questioned and taken in to custody by DeKalb police.

Police said they charged Sabino with creating a hazardous situation, which carries a $1,000 fine, and a sentence of 60 days in jail.

Sabino told police that he indeed does have a military background from the US Marine Corps.

There is no word as to the reason Sabino created the plan, or if he actually planned to carry anything out. Police said the matter is still under investigation.

A letter was sent home with St. Pius students on Thursday afternoon, signed by Spellman:

Parents:

Upon your arrival at school this morning, some of you may have noticed the Dekalb County Police on campus.

They were assisting us with what we initially considered to be a serious situation. Thankfully we learned that what had alarmed us was nothing more than a simple misunderstanding. At no time was anyone at St. Pius in danger.

I want each of you to know that the safety and security of your child is paramount to us, and we take every precaution to ensure their safety while they are with us on this campus. I was extremely pleased with the response of the DeKalb County Police, their professionalism, and their concern for our safety and the well-being of our students.

I wanted to share this with you to simply quell any concerns you may have had and to emphasize that this morning's commotion is absolutely no cause for concern.