The REAL reason why 72,000 ladybugs ended up in one school

Wednesday, May 27, 2015, 9:47 AM - A prank involving 72,000 ladybugs into a Maryland high school has led to criminal charges.

Yes, seventy-two THOUSAND. They were released by current and former students at Chopicton High School in St. Mary's County on May 20, at around 3:40 a.m., setting off a burglar alarm in the process.

"When you walked in the building, they covered the walls and hallways, flying around, and they were all in a pile in different areas of the building," one staff member told The Washington Post.

It took several hours of vacuuming to get most of the creatures out, and even then, some were still buzzing around for a couple of days after.

The police weren't amused, and later identified six students and one alumnus as the culprits. Four of the alleged suspects, who were minors, were charged with fourth degree burglary, property destruction and disruption of school activities while three adults will be charged by criminal summons.

The school has imposed its own penalties on the pranksters. One, Brian Reminga, has been barred from walking at the school's graduation.

He's protested the penalty, calling the incident a "harmless prank." Several of his friends agreed.

"I don't think that they should go straight out of high school with these criminal records that's going to make them not get a job, get into college,” one, Trinity Alexander, told Fox News.

Reminga said the bugs had been ordered from Amazon (We checked, and it seems you can get packs of 9,000 for around $47, plus shipping and handling). They are typically used by gardeners to keep pests like aphids under control.

WATCH: Tick bite causes man to be allergic to meat:

SOURCES: Washington Post | Huffington Post | Fox News