PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An 18-year-old man was arrested Monday and charged with making a threat against a high school in New York in an Internet instant message.

Benjamin Ballard was charged with transmitting a threat via interstate commerce, which carries a potential sentence of five years in prison, FBI spokeswoman Beth Anne Steele said.

Ballard allegedly made the threat to a New York student late Thursday while they were using America Online. He reportedly warned the student not to go to school Friday because "there's going to be a lot of people dead tomorrow" at Edgemont High School in Greenburgh, N.Y.

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The Edgemont student notified police and the FBI said it traced the message to Ballard's home.

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