PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (CBS12) — A 12-year-old student at St. Lucie West K-8 was arrested after allegedly creating an anonymous Instagram account to spread rumors and issue violent threats against another student and the school, according to Port St. Lucie Police.
The investigation began around 10:30 p.m. on September 16, when PSLPD said it responded to a residence regarding threats made from an unknown Instagram account. The victim, also a student at St. Lucie West K-8, had received direct messages threatening to shoot them and referencing a possible attack on the school.
According to the arrest affidavit, the suspect, identified as Reggie Joseph, created the account after a falling out with the victim over the summer. The victim, unaware of the account holder’s identity, messaged the account asking for the rumors to stop. Instead, the suspect escalated the situation, sending threatening messages and photos of firearms.
Some of the direct quotes from the messages included:
“762 at yo house and skl””Ak 47 ar and everything””Know you hear lockdown run””Don’t hide””I will find yo a** fam””You got to slwk8″”Wait for Oct 14th”
Police say the photos were not taken by the suspect and were pulled from other social media platforms.
“Both photos were sent from the suspect to the victim. The photos were taken from another social media site and are not actual photos of the suspect or taken by him,” a public information officer clarified.
School security was immediately notified, and additional law enforcement officers were stationed at the school the following morning. Detectives issued exigent legal orders to Meta, the parent company of Instagram, which returned subscriber information that helped identify the suspect.
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With assistance from the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office School Resource Deputies, detectives located the suspect at school and took him into custody without incident. His phone was seized and confirmed to be linked to the Instagram account used to make the threats.
The suspect told investigators that the threats were intended as a prank.
Peter Gittens has been living in Port St Lucie for more than a decade and has a daughter who attends St Lucie West K-8. He said prank or not, the messages are alarming.
“What’s the difference between a prank and a threat,” Gittens said. “It all seems the same to me.”
The juvenile is facing one count of electronic threats to kill, do bodily injury, or conduct an act of terrorism. He was transported to the Department of Juvenile Justice.
The school shared a statement with CBS12 News stating:
Student safety is our highest priority. Any threat made against our schools—regardless of intent—is treated with the utmost seriousness. Threats are no joking matter and carry real consequences, both legally and within our school system. In this case, our well-established safety systems worked exactly as designed. The threat was reported by a parent and acted on immediately by law enforcement. Working in partnership with district security and school administration, the source of the threat was quickly identified. A school messenger was sent to all SLWK8 parents to keep families informed. The student involved is facing serious consequences, and we are cooperating fully with law enforcement. We encourage families to talk with their children about responsible behavior and the importance of speaking up if they see or hear something concerning. We remain committed to maintaining a safe and secure learning environment for every student, every day.
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