STUART, Iowa — A Menlo woman has been arrested after police say she made false school threat reports earlier this week.

According to the Stuart Police Department, an individual called the school after regular hours and reported a potential threat of terrorism towards the school on Tuesday, October 7. The statements made by the caller prompted an immediate law enforcement response.

Court records state that the caller told a West Central Valley School District secretary that two individuals were planning to “blow up the school” the following day.

Police say a thorough investigation revealed that there was no credible threat and that the information the caller had given was false and may have been intended to falsely implicate another individual.

Authorities say these false reports caused unnecessary alarm among school staff and students, and distress to the person who was wrongly accused, and later, was subjected to a criminal investigation.

On Friday, the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office arrested 55-year-old Terri Lynn Lira Arthur on a warrant filed by the Stuart Police Department and is charged with:

• False Reports to or Communications with Public Safety Entities – Class D Felony
• Harassment – Simple Misdemeanor

Arthur is being held at the Guthrie County Jail.

Following the arrest the Stuart Police released a statement reading, “False reports to law enforcement and emergency services have serious consequences. They divert limited public safety resources away from real emergencies, disrupt community operations, and create unnecessary fear and confusion among the public.”