PORT CHARLOTTE, FL â April 10, 2020 â According to an online news report published by YourSun.com, a man from Port Charlotte, Florida has been arrested after he posted comments containing threats on several YouTube channels. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement charged the man with sending a written threat to kill.
The suspect's arrest affidavit stated that the Port Charlotte man's YouTube comments were detected and were believed to be a "threat involving imminent death or serious bodily injury to a person or persons." The suspect was identified by reverse searching the IP address, phone number, and email of the individual making the threats on YouTube. After the identity of the commenter was discovered, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement was notified by the Northern California Regional Intelligence Center of the threats and the suspect's identity and contact information.
It is alleged that the suspect made numerous threats of such, "Kill the police Kill the whole force," and "That's why I bought a rifle and learned how to use it: that's my ballot. That's how you get your voice heard: let them know that You'll fâ them up." The affidavit also states that the suspect made a Facebook post asking for information about where the best place to shoot a 9 mm gun in Port Charlotte. Also, the affidavit claims the suspect stated that he visited the Point Blank Guns & Shooting Range. A Florida Department of Law Enforcement agent assigned to investigate the suspect as a potential threat visited the Point Blank Guns & Shooting Range to interview possible witnesses. The agent was able to confirm that the suspect had visited the Point Blank Guns & Shooting Range. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement agent filed for and was granted a warrant to track the suspect's cell phone. Also, a search warrant was obtained to search the suspect's home in Port Charlotte, Florida. The search resulted in the law enforcement officer's finding a backpack full of 9 mm ammunition, high capacity magazines, and a Kel-Tec Sub-2000 9 mm rifle.
The affidavit states that the suspect admitted that he wrote and posted some of the comments. However, he claimed that he didn't remember posting some of the other comments. The suspect claimed that his social media accounts had been hacked. The suspect also admitted that he purchased the Kel-Tec Sub-2000 9 mm rifle and that he also applied for a concealed weapon permit a couple of months ago. The suspect also stated that he would likely be denied the concealed weapons permit. He also told law enforcement that he takes medication for depression, OCD, PTSD. He told officers that his drugs cause memory loss.
The suspect is being held on a $350,000 bond and remains in custody at the Charlotte County Jail.
Florida State Statute 836.10 - Written threats to kill, do bodily injury, or conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism.
According to Florida Statute 836.10, it is a second-degree felony offense, in Florida, if an individual writes a threat to murder or injure another person and makes that threat viewable. Also, it is a second-degree felony offense if a person writes and makes viewable a threat to commit an act of terrorism or mass shooting. The penalties, if convicted, are a fine of $10,000 plus a prison sentence of up to 15 years or probation of up to 15 years. In almost all of these types of cases, prosecutors will seek the maximum punishments.
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