Reece Elliott appears in court after Facebook posting led to 2,900 Tennessee pupils being kept off school

This article is more than 7 years old

This article is more than 7 years old

A 24-year-old British man has been remanded in custody by magistrates after he was charged with threatening to kill 200 US schoolchildren.

Reece Elliott appeared at South Tyneside magistrates' court for a 30-minute hearing on Saturday where he also faced a charge of making a malicious communication.

Threatening posts made on a memorial Facebook page for a girl who was killed in a Tennessee road accident led to thousands of children being kept off school in the Warren County area of the state on Thursday.

Elliott, of Shrewsbury Terrace, South Tyneside, did not enter pleas to the charges.

Kevin Smallcombe, defending, said Elliott has no passport and no desire to visit Warren County.

Jim Lynch, chairman of the bench, said Elliott would be remanded into custody.

Police were stationed this week at schools in McMinnville, the seat of Warren County, 70 miles north-west of Chattanooga, and 2,900 children missed classes.