Hundreds of parents, students, staff at risk of identity theft as personal records found tossed on floor at Old Pulaski Middle School

PULASKI COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) — Many people are worried after confidential records were discovered thrown on the ground of the Old Pulaski Middle School, which means hundreds of students, teachers, and staff are now at risk of having their private information stolen.

Pulaski County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Kevin Siers says the documents date back to the 1970s.

In pictures given to WFXR News by the Pulaski County Administrator Jonathan D. Sweet shows medical documents tossed around from 2016.

Sweet says he had no idea that the documents were left in the building. It took nearly nine months for school administrative staff to clear it out, but only a portion of that material was removed.

“The school was vandalized after it was turned over to the county. We were notified about them in August of this year,” said Dr. Siers.

When crews went back to the building, they were in shock.

“We are talking about documents exposed on the floor that contained names, addresses, birth dates, social security numbers, as well as other sensitive information,” said Sweet.

In an email that was sent to Pulaski County team members, Sweet warned about the breach. However, that turned ugly very quickly after an anonymous source released his email to the media. Now, he fears for his life, as well as for his wife and kids.

“I am currently being followed. A school employee has a Freedom of Information Act on all of my credit card receipts,” said Sweet.

He did not reveal who is making the threat, and how deep it goes.

Dr. Siers says they have this under control and are working with their insurance team to make sure to take care of everyone affected.

“We have identified all of the individuals, and we have turned that over to our insurance carrier, and they are working to send out the letters of notification and given them all of the information they need to sign up for a year of identity protection,” said Dr. Siers.

It is still unclear how and why the documents were left behind.