Teen lost Fortnite game, so threatened to shoot up Miami school, police say
A Pembroke Pines 14-year-old posted threats on YouTube telling students at a Miami Catholic school to “be ready” and that he planned on bringing a weapon to injure students, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said.
His reason, according to BSO: He lost a game of Fortnite.
On Wednesday, BSO’s Threat Management Unit received a tip from the FBI regarding the threats, which were posted in late August in the comments section on YouTube. In the posts, the teen said the incident would happen at St. Brendan High School on Sept. 12, according to BSO. Sept. 12 is Sunday.
The teen, whom BSO did not identify, does not attend St. Brendan and it wasn’t clear why he targeted that school. He now faces a felony charge of written threats to kill, do bodily injury or conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism.
Mary Ross Agosta, a spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of Miami, said the teen never attended St. Brendan and is a student of the Archdiocese’s virtual school.
“At this point it’s a time for us to say to parents, you need to monitor what your children are doing on social media,” she said.
Last month, two other Broward teens were arrested on charges of making threats after detectives say they posted a message on Instagram that they would “terrorize” Charles W. Flanagan High School in Pembroke Pines.
This story was originally published September 10, 2021 at 1:49 PM.
