A Brooklyn teenager was arrested for allegedly making threats to schools in Texas and Florida, including targeting a family member of a victim of the 2022 Uvalde school massacre on TikTok. The 16-year-old boy was taken into custody at his home in Brooklyn on May 1 and charged with one felony count of making terroristic threats, according to the Uvalde Police Department.
The teen is accused of sending threats directly to a family member of a victim of the Uvalde shooting on TikTok, as well as making multiple “swatting” calls and sending threats to the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District on social media in January. Additionally, he admitted to making swatting calls to schools and law enforcement agencies in Uvalde, San Antonio, Coral Springs, and Parkland, Florida.
After a 3-month investigation involving 14 agencies across Texas, Florida, and New York, detectives from the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office located the teen’s home. Despite not having access to weapons or direct connections to the targeted areas, his actions had significant implications for school safety, community security, and law enforcement resources.
The teenager confessed to researching active shooter incidents and monitoring social media accounts for law enforcement agencies and students in the Uvalde school district. He was charged with one felony count of making terroristic threats and four misdemeanor counts of false reporting of an emergency.
Uvalde Police Chief Homer E. Delgado emphasized the importance of holding individuals accountable for threatening communities and disrupting safety. The case is being prosecuted in Texas, with the Brooklyn DA’s office assisting in the arrest. The teenager’s name was not released due to his status as a juvenile.
The arrest serves as a reminder of the consequences of making threats online and the collaborative efforts of law enforcement agencies to ensure the safety of schools and neighborhoods.
