CRIME
Teen Fire Cadet In Iowa Arrested For Allegedly Planning Arson ‘Hit List’
The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office
A high school student in Iowa is charged with seven felony counts of threat of terrorism after allegedly keeping a hit list of students and others she wanted to harm in acts of arson, authorities said.
Kaelyn Alexis Surrell, 18, allegedly threatened to target fellow students and staff at Sidney High School in Sidney, as well as other people in the community, with acts of arson, according to the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office. Surrell was arrested Tuesday and was being held on a $5,000 bond.
According to a criminal complaint, Surrell had the “potential knowledge to carry out” arson because she was a fire cadet with the Shenandoah Fire Department.
Authorities were alerted to the alleged plot after Surrell revealed the hit list to another person. According to the complaint, Surrell did have a phone conversation with a reporting party advising she had a hit list for individuals to cause arson incidents towards.
The complaint also alleges Surrell shared the hit list in Snapchat messages.
“The list included other students and employees that are enrolled in the Sidney Community School District. Other individuals included on the list are people she had bad encounters with where she has a motive to carry out harming them, the complaint stated.
TMX contributed to this article.
