SALEM –A 33-year-old Salem woman has been arrested for allegedly making threats to harm children and a school bus driver.

According to Salem Police Chief Kyle Ambuehl, around 9:15 Monday morning, administrators with Salem Elementary District #111 notified the Salem Police Department School Resource Officer assigned of a concerning voicemail they’d received last Thursday.

Reports indicate the voicemail contained statements threatening to “drag” children off a specific bus, and do substantial harm to them as well as to that specific bus driver. Ambuehl says the message expressly implied this would happen if the school administration did not handle the caller’s complaint to their satisfaction.

As a result of the investigation, the Salem Police officers arrested Marisa Starnes of Salem on a Class 3 felony charge of Intimidation. Chief Ambuehl says during the arrest, Starnes reportedly stood by her statement.

At the direction of the Marion County State’s Attorney’s Office, Starnes was released with a notice to appear in court under the Pre-Trail Fairness Act. The Salem Police Department and Salem Elementary District #111 say in a press release that they want to reiterate to the community they take the safety of all students and employees very seriously, and such actions will not be tolerated.

Salem Elementary District #111 will reportedly be contacting guardians of students who ride the bus involved in this incident to advise them of the situation.