A 13-year-old said he’d ‘become a god’ if he shot up his school, Florida cops say
A Florida teenager who claimed he’d “become a god” after shooting up his school has been arrested and charged with two felonies.
The 13-year-old is charged with sending a written threat to conduct a mass shooting and a false report of using a firearm in a violent manner, according to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office.
The Miami Herald is not releasing the student’s name or photo because of his age.
The investigation into the student began earlier this month when administrators at Gateway Intermediate School, 12770 Gateway Blvd. in Fort Myers, found a notebook with “disconcerting and non-specific violence,” according to the sheriff’s office. The notebook’s content did not meet the criteria needed to arrest the eighth-grader, according to deputies, and a home assessment found no viable threat.
As a precaution, he was closely monitored and random searches were conducted. The student was also sent to therapy.
In those sessions, officials say the student expressed “admiration” for the Columbine High School killers, showed a lack of empathy, and was deemed a risk to harm himself and others.
During school, he was questioned on the research he claimed to have on a specific teacher, including where the teacher lived and the type of cars owned. Officials say he became disruptive and was removed from class.
Students also told deputies he was making “frightening” statements about shooting up the school, claimed to own a copy of the “Anarchist Cookbook” for making bombs, and had a shotgun.
Deputies say they later found additional writings from the student that talked about how he hated his school.
“Everybody here needs to die,” the student wrote, according to the sheriff’s office. “(Expletive) humanity, (expletive) society, (expletive) life. Soon, I will become a god, and I will release my wrath on this (expletive) school soon.”
The eighth-grader was arrested after his release from a hospital.
This story was originally published September 16, 2019 at 9:59 AM.
