Gay, minority Lone Peak HS students targeted by Twitter account

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A Twitter account was being used to target Lone Peak High School students with hateful messages, according to a mother of one of those students.

“I am a mother who has cried for two days,” the mother, who wishes to remain anonymous to protect her son’s identity, told KSL News.

The tweets included epithets based on race and sexuality.

“They would take pictures of the minorities here and say things about them on Twitter — like, some pretty racist remarks about them,” student Matthew Johnson told KSL.

An apology was sent on a separate Twitter account on Tuesday.

“Sorry to anyone who was offended by this twitter I am not racist and ment it as a joke my little sis is adopted black and <3 her to death,” the tweet said, without editing.

Alpine School District spokesman said the offending Twitter account had been “taken down” by the end of the school day yesterday, after the principal read a letter to the student body offering a $100 reward for information about who was responsible for the tweets.

The school resource officer is investigating the incident.

The targeted student’s mother still fears for his safety and is considering changing schools and says she has contacted the FBI.

“The issue really starts at home, so what I want to say is, parents, please talk to your children about cyber bullying,” she told KSL. “It is truly a hate crime what has happened to me and my son.”