Woman Jailed On Felony Charge For Mary Washington Phone Threat

FREDERICKSBURG, VA —Police arrested an Orange County woman on a felony charge for allegedly leaving a voicemail message Monday with a University of Mary Washington employee that resulted in university officials canceling classes and events for the remainder of the day. The university issued a shelter-in-place advisory at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, which was lifted around 3 p.m.

Court records show Andria Theodorou was arraigned Tuesday morning in Fredericksburg General District Court on a charge of making a threat in writing at school, the Free Lance-Star reported. Court records show she is a resident of Locust Grove in Orange County, about 15 miles west of Fredericksburg.

Theodorou recently wrote three stories, where she was listed as a "staff writer," for the University of Mary Washington's student newspaper, according to the report.

Monday's voicemail message warned that an individual would be coming to campus with a firearm. The voicemail was forwarded to University of Mary Washington police. After assessing the threat, campus police determined classes and campus activities should be suspended, and all members of the community should shelter in place.

"From yesterday's situation, we have learned important takeaways. The campus community would like to have more training on what steps to take in these types of circumstances," University of Mary Washington President Troy Paino said Tuesday in a statement. "Also, we all would benefit from a common definition of terms such as shelter in place."

University of Mary Washington police are currently developing a video related to firearms violence, according to Paino, and are planning safety awareness and training programs for campus members next semester.

During their investigation Monday afternoon, University of Mary Washington police identified the caller. The police brought the caller in for questioning. Once campus police determined the threat was not credible and the person was arrested, Fredericksburg law enforcement became involved, according to a university spokeswoman.

Theodorou was jailed at the Rappahannock County Jail. Her bail was set at $10,000. Court records list the felony charge as "threat in writing at school."