Florida teen, 15, arrested after threatening to shoot up high school – read chilling text sent to classmate

A teenager has been arrested after threatening to shoot up a Florida high school.

Mya Elizabeth Young, 15, is charged with making written or electronic threats with the intent to commit a mass shooting or terrorist act after officers obtained text messages the suspect sent to a classmate.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office released some of the chilling correspondence on Tuesday, shortly after Young’s arrest.

The suspect, who was addressed by officers using he/him pronouns, was handcuffed at Alonso High School. The school is located in Tampa, where police have been busy with threats of violence recently.

In Hillsborough County alone, 260 threats have been made by students since September, just a few weeks into the school year. The texts Young sent are particularly graphic, containing threats of violence against several fellow students.

Officers released this text message Young sent to a classmate. In an accompanying statement, they referred to the suspect using the pronouns he/him

“Keep playing with me, I’m going to kill them too,” reads one of the released texts.

“Look, I’m going to take a gun to school and I’m going to shoot every single one of you.

‘Start with [REDACTED] and ending with [REDACTED] And [REDACTED] and everyone who is there.

I am a beginning with [REDACTED] and then I end with you [REDACTED]’, it continues.

‘And then I’m going to kill people. I’m going to kill everyone.[.] Watch.’

Along with the texts, officers released a photo of Young and a brief statement.

It detailed how police arrested the suspect ‘because he had threatened to shoot’ [his high school] in a text message correspondence outlining the charges against the potential shooter.

The suspect was handcuffed at Alonso High School, seen here, on Tuesday during school hours.

It was posted at the police station at 4 p.m., about an hour after the school day ended.

HCSO’s School Threat Assessment and Response Team responded to the school to arrest Young, area officers said. It came just a week after they began investigating a separate threat that left Newsome High School locked down for hours.

In addition to threatening to shoot, Young was charged with unlawful use of a two-way communication device, a Florida-only offense punishable by up to five years in prison.

This occurs when officers are convinced they can prove that a suspect knowingly used a device, such as a computer or telephone, to commit a crime.

Written or electronic threats with the intent to kill, cause bodily harm, or commit a mass shooting are considered a second-degree felony and are punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Juveniles could also face a $10,000 fine if prosecutors decide to treat the teen as an adult.

Young’s gender is also unclear, as officers addressed him as “he.”

DailyMail.com has reached out to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office for more information, as they and other nearby departments continue to deal with similar threats.

The school is located in Tampa, where local police are busy dealing with the threat of violence.

It was unclear Tuesday night whether Young would be tried as an adult. Prosecutors have not yet released a statement.

On Friday, September 13, threats to shoot a teacher and bring a bomb to the Newsome High School campus were posted on Fortify Florida, a suspicious activity reporting tool that allows users to report information to law enforcement.

Officers arrived on scene and the school was placed on lockdown. Meanwhile, multiple HCSO units, including the School Threat Assessment Response Squad and SWAT team, systematically searched the school to ensure the safety of students.

About 200 officers participated in the search, searching buildings for hours, conducting security checks and working with school administrators to evacuate students.

Ultimately, no weapons or credible threats were found, although the investigation is ongoing.

“The anxiety and trauma these students, staff and parents are experiencing today is unimaginable. No community should ever have to deal with such fear and uncertainty,” Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a news conference at the time.

“Everyone at the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, including myself, is committed to using every resource available to ensure the safety and security of our schools is not compromised.”

That day, a total of eight threats were sent regarding Newsome High School.

On Friday, September 13, threats to shoot a teacher and bring a bomb to the Newsome High School campus were posted on Fortify Florida, an activity reporting tool that allows users to report information to law enforcement. The threat turned out to be false, but is still under investigation

Last week, HCSO investigated 111 school threats reported to Fortify Florida alone, and this month that number has grown to 260 total.

Also receiving reports of threats are nearby counties such as Sarasota, Pinellas, Polk and Pasco, with sheriffs in those counties reporting 109, 65, 140 and 100 tips respectively.

Only a handful of arrests have been made, most of them in Polk County, where 24 people have been arrested since the start of the school year.

Compare that to Pinellas and Sarasota, where three people each have been arrested for threats, and Pasco has none.

As of Tuesday, no arrests had been made in Hillsborough, but the case against the youths changed that.

The investigation is still ongoing at the time of writing, with the suspect being held in custody in the meantime.