A Tallahassee food truck impresario and comfort food entrepreneur has now been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges he threatened to “shoot up” two area schools.
Demetrius Murray, 33, was named in a six-count indictment for “interstate communication of threats to injure children,” U.S. Attorney Jack Heekin of the Northern District of Florida said in a news release.
Murray was arraigned Dec. 4; his trial is currently set for Feb. 2 before Senior U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle. He faces a maximum of five years in prison on each count. He had previously been charged with similar state crimes.
The indictment details the specific threats he’s alleged to have said in a Nov. 14 argument on the phone with a debt collection agency, including:
Dee Murray, owner of Comeback Tacos, shares how he came up with the concept for the food truck Wednesday, June 4, 2025.
“I’m headed up there right now to kill these kids at the middle school.”
“I got a 9 millimeter gun in my hand and I’m going to this middle school and I’m about to shoot this middle school up right now.”
“My gun is pointed at this little girl right now … blast this little girl head off, first white (expletive) out here …”
The threats allegedly were directed at Kate Sullivan Elementary School and Cobb Middle School, next to each other on Miccosukee Road in central Tallahassee. What’s not clear is why he targeted these schools.
Murray had been in the Leon County jail without bond but wasn’t listed as an inmate there on Dec. 5, suggesting he was moved to a federal lockup. He has not yet retained or been assigned an attorney, court dockets show.
In 2020, Murray’s first business venture in Tallahassee, Gurlie’s Lemonade with $3 lemonades and fried Oreos quickly became a raging sensation for Tallahassee foodies and was even spotlighted on the Today Show.
He later pivoted to selling tacos at his Comeback Tacos food truck in Midtown. He was inspired by the redemption story of Tallahassee personal injury lawyer Jimmy Fasig who “rose from inmate in federal prison to the partner of what became a multimillion-dollar law firm.”
According to previous reporting, Fasig helped fund the food truck business after meeting with Murray and hearing his story.
Reports show that Capital Resource International of Santa Clarita, California, had been contacting Murray to collect a debt on a business loan in default and the collector who had been communicating with Murray said, “he lost everything.”
The threats, which were video recorded and emailed to CRI representatives by Murray, were made while inside a parked car across from a green fence with a playground behind it, which is how law enforcement was able to identify the schools.
The threatening videos led the Consolidated Dispatch Agency to take the rare step of sending out a countywide automated warning to school administrators from pre-K to high school. The alerts prompted school lockdowns and closed campuses.
Murray was eventually arrested in Gadsden County where he was interviewed by detectives. He reportedly admitted to making the threats, claiming it was an attempt to get the debt collectors to leave him alone.
“I ain’t got (expletive) in my life,” he told law enforcement. “I lost my (expletive) business.”
Jim Rosica can be reached at jrosica@tallahassee.com and follow him on Twitter/X: @JimRosicaFL.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Indictment details alleged Tallahassee school threat videos